Picture Credit: X
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has announced its 15-member squad for the T20 World Cup 2024, set to be played in the United States of America (USA) and the West Indies in June. The Babar Azam-led Men in Green are the last to name their squad for the biennial tournament with International Cricket Council (ICC) setting May 25 as the deadline.
The side will be captained by Babar Azam, who was renamed as their all-format skipper, replacing Shaheen Shah Afridi. Moreover, pacer Haris Rauf makes a return into the side after an extended injury layoff. The Pakistan speedster last featured in the national colours in January 2024.
Hasan Ali continues to be prominent absentee in the Pakistan’s squad while Abrar Ahmed, Azam Khan, Mohammad Abbas, Saim Ayub and Usman Khan will make their maiden T20 World Cup appearance. “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,” the board stated in its release.
“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,” it further read.
The Men in Green are placed in Group A with India, Ireland, Canada and co-hosts USA. The Babar Azam-led side will play their first match against the co-hosts USA on June 6 in Dallas.
Pakistan’s T20 World Cup 2024 squad
Babar Azam (C), 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.
