Lahore, 24 May 2024 – The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has announced its 15-player squad for the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024, set to take place from June 1-29 in the USA and Caribbean.
The squad will be captained by Babar Azam, continuing his leadership from previous tournaments.
Squad (in alphabetical order):
• Babar Azam (captain)
• Abrar Ahmed
• Azam Khan
• Fakhar Zaman
• Haris Rauf
• Iftikhar Ahmed
• Imad Wasim
• Mohammad Abbas Afridi
• Mohammad Amir
• Mohammad Rizwan
• Naseem Shah
• Saim Ayub
• Shadab Khan
• Shaheen Shah Afridi
• Usman Khan
The PCB has not announced any reserve players for the squad.
Player Support Personnel:
• Wahab Riaz (senior team manager)
• Mansoor Rana (team manager)
• Gary Kirsten (head coach)
• Azhar Mahmood (assistant coach)
• Simon Helmot (fielding coach)
• David Reid (mental performance coach)
• Aftab Khan (high performance coach)
• Cliffe Deacon (physiotherapist)
• Irtaza Komail (chief security officer)
• Mohammad Imran (masseur)
• Mohammad Khurram Sarwar (team doctor)
• Talha Ijaz (analyst)
• Raza Kitchlew (media and digital manager)
• Drikus Saaiman (strength and conditioning coach)
The squad selection was finalized after a two-hour meeting of the selection committee, which included Abdul Razzaq, Asad Shafiq, Babar Azam, Bilal Afzal, Gary Kirsten, Mohammad Yousuf, and Wahab Riaz.
According to the PCB, the team features five players making their T20 World Cup debut: Abrar Ahmed, Azam Khan, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Saim Ayub, and Usman Khan. Mohammad Amir and Imad Wasim return to the squad after last participating in the 2016 and 2021 tournaments, respectively. The remaining eight players were part of the 2022 World Cup squad in Australia.
Gary Kirsten, head coach of the Pakistan team, expressed confidence in the selected players, stating, “This is an extremely talented and balanced side that has a mixture of youth and experience. These players have been playing together for some time and look well prepared and settled for next month’s event.”
He added, “Haris Rauf is fully fit and bowling well in the nets. It would have been nice if he had gotten an outing at Headingley, but we remain confident that he will continue to maintain an upward trajectory in the upcoming matches, as he will have an important role to play along with other strike bowlers in the T20 World Cup.”
Pakistan boasts a strong track record in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup since its inception in 2007. The team won the 2009 event under Younis Khan and reached the finals twice under Shoaib Malik (2007) and Babar Azam (2022). They also made it to the semi-finals in 2010, 2012, and 2021.
Pakistan’s Schedule of Matches:
• 6 June – vs USA, Grand Prairie Cricket Stadium, Dallas
• 9 June – vs India, Nassau County International Cricket Stadium, New York
• 11 June – vs Canada, Nassau County International Cricket Stadium, New York
• 16 June – vs Ireland, Central Broward Park & Broward County Stadium, Lauderhill, Florida
Pakistan has been seeded A2 in the first round. If they qualify for the second round, their Super Eight matches are scheduled as follows:
• 19 June – vs D1, Antigua
• 21 June – vs C2, Barbados
• 23 June – vs B1, Barbados
With a mix of seasoned campaigners and fresh talent, Pakistan aims to bring the T20 World Cup trophy home this year, building on their rich legacy in the tournament.