Abdul Samad to lead Pakistan Shaheens in Rising Stars Asia Cup

Pakistan Shaheens will defend their Rising Stars Asia Cup title with Abdul Samad as captain, ESPNcricinfo reported. The 50-over men's Asia Cup Rising Stars tournament will be played from November 19 to 29 in Qatar.

The selectors have named a 15-player squad which largely comprises players with international experience for the eight-team tournament.

The batting includes Hasan Nawaz, who made a comeback in Pakistan's ODI team after a year's gap in the recent tri-series, Haider Ali, Maaz Sadaqat, Shamyl Hussain, Farhan Yousaf, and Shahzaib Khan.

Fast bowler Mohammad Hasnain, who made his ODI debut in 2019, leads the bowling department, which includes Ahmed Daniyal, Akif Javed, and Sufyan Moqim, who was in the Pakistan squad for the Rawalpindi leg of the tri-series.

The selectors have named three allrounders in Mohammad Imran, Saad Masood, and Danish Aziz, while former Pakistan U19 captain Rohail Nazir is the only wicketkeeper.

Imran made his Test debut in September in the third Test at Edgbaston against England and played his first T20I against Sri Lanka last month. Yousaf and Shahzaib are the only two players who are yet to make their debuts for Pakistan.

Abdul Samad has played six ODIs and eight T20Is, according to Associated Press.

Context

Pakistan Shaheens hold both the T20 and 50-over Asia Cup Rising Stars titles. They won the previous 50-over edition of the tournament, played in 2023, with a 128-run win over India A in the final at R Premadasa in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Meanwhile, in the previous edition, which was played in T20 format, the Shaheens clinched the title by edging Bangladesh A in a thrilling final decided by a super over.

Pakistan was runner-up in the opening two editions of the tournament in 2013 and 2017, while they emerged victorious in 2019.

Pakistan are grouped with UAE, India A, and Nepal in Group B, and will begin their title defence on November 20 against UAE at the University of Doha Ground.

They play India A on November 22 and their last group-stage match will be on November 24 against Nepal at the Eden Park International Stadium. Group A comprises Bangladesh A, Sri Lanka A, Afghanistan A and Hong Kong, China.

The top two teams from each group will advance to the Rising Stars Asia Cup semi-finals, scheduled for November 26 and 27.

Pakistan Shaheens squad for Rising Stars Asia Cup 2026

Related on Apex Sports News

• India Under-19 Asia Cup squad: Sehwag and Dravid named

• India A squad for Rising Stars Asia Cup: Tilak Varma named captain, Sooryavanshi included; Harshit Rana returns

• Fakhar Zaman century powers Pakistan to tri-series triumph over Sri Lanka

Sources

• ESPNcricinfo

• Sportstar