New Delhi . The excitement of the match between India and Pakistan in Asia Cup Rising Stars 2026 has already started increasing. After the Indian team, now Pakistan has also announced its 15-member team for the tournament. In this tournament to be held in Qatar from 19 to 29 November, Pakistan Shaheens team will defend its title. The captaincy of the team has been handed over to young all-rounder Abdul Samad. Many such players have got a place in this team, who have the ability to change the course of the competition with their performance.
Pakistan has been placed in Group-B of this competition. Teams from India A, Nepal and United Arab Emirates (UAE) are included in this group. There will be matches between all the teams in the group stage, after which the semi-finals and finals will be played. Group matches will not be easy for Pakistan, as it is likely to face tough challenges from teams like India-A and Nepal.
The most talked about match in this tournament is about the match between India and Pakistan. Both the teams will face each other on November 22. Cricket fans will keep a special eye on this match. Pakistan Shaheens have shown their strong presence in the previous editions, while the Indian team will try to win the title by performing better this time.
The history of the old title clash between India and Pakistan is also linked in this competition. In the final of the 50-over Asia Cup Rising Stars held in Sri Lanka in the year 2023, Pakistan Shaheens defeated India A by 128 runs. With this victory, Pakistan won the title. Now the Indian team will have an opportunity to settle the score of that defeat and prove its superiority in the tournament.
At the same time, in the last season, Pakistan had shown its strength in T20 format also. In the final of that edition, Pakistan Shaheens won the title by defeating Bangladesh-A in the Super Over. After the success in two consecutive formats, the Pakistani team would like to maintain its strong position this time too.
Apart from captain Abdul Samad, the responsibility of batting in the announced team of Pakistan will be on players like Haider Ali, Hasan Nawaz, Shahzeb Khan and wicketkeeper Rohail Nazir. Special attention will be kept on Hasan Nawaz. He showed his batting ability by playing an inning of 96 runs against India in the final of the Asian Games. In such a situation, there is curiosity about his performance in the upcoming match against India.
In bowling, Pakistan has options in both the pace and spin departments. The fast bowling attack will be led by Mohammad Hasnain, who has international cricket experience. Ahmed Daniyal, Akif Javed and Muhammad Imran Randhawa have been included with him. Ahmed Daniyal has also been in the news due to his performance in the Super Over.
The responsibility of spin bowling has been given to Danish Aziz, Saad Masood and Sufyan Mokim. The players included in the team have been selected with the aim of maintaining a balance between batting and bowling. Under the leadership of Abdul Samad, this team will start its campaign against UAE.
Pakistan Shaheen's first match will be against UAE on 20th November. After this, they will face India A on 22nd November and Nepal on 24th November. After the group stage, the semi-final matches will be played on 26 and 27 November, while the final of the tournament is scheduled for 29 November.
Pakistan's 15-member team includes captain Abdul Samad along with Ahmed Daniyal, Akif Javed, Danish Aziz, Farhan Yusuf, Haider Ali, Hasan Nawaz, Maaz Sadaqat, Mohammad Hasnain, Muhammad Imran Randhawa, Rohail Nazir, Saad Masood, Shahzeb Khan, Shamil Hussain and Sufyan Mokim.