Sahibzada Farhan to Lead a Rebuilt Pakistan Side at the Asian Games

Sahibzada Farhan has been named captain of Pakistan’s squad for the 2026 Asian Games, his first time leading the national side. The 29-year-old has been Pakistan’s leading T20I run-scorer since last year and had an outstanding T20 World Cup 2026, topping the tournament’s run charts with 383 runs in six innings at a strike rate of 160.25.

Leadership and new faces

Abdul Samad is the vice-captain of the 15-man group. He was not in the World Cup squad but played in the recent ODI series against Australia and has six ODIs and five T20Is for Pakistan. Four uncapped T20I players have been included: Akif Javed, Ali Raza, Maaz Sadaqat and Saad Masood. Usman Khan is the main wicketkeeper.

The squad looks very different from the one that went to the T20 World Cup. Regular captain Salman Ali Agha, Babar Azam, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Shadab Khan are among the senior names who have been left out.

Chasing gold

The selection suggests Pakistan want to build depth and give emerging players exposure. They will aim to challenge for the gold medal, which India won at the previous edition under Ruturaj Gaikwad’s captaincy.

Pakistan squad

Sahibzada Farhan (captain), Abdul Samad (vice-captain), Abrar Ahmed, Ahmed Daniyal, Akif Javed, Ali Raza, Arafat Minhas, Haider Ali, Hasan Nawaz, Maaz Sadaqat, Mohammad Salman Mirza, Saad Masood, Saim Ayub, Sufyan Moqim and Usman Khan (wicketkeeper).