The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief, Mohsin Naqvi, stated that the announcement of the squad doesn't mean that the team will participate in the upcoming T20 World Cup 2026. He reiterated his earlier stand that the PCB has been waiting to know the Pakistan government's stand to take a call on the nation's participation in the T20 World Cup, scheduled across India and Sri Lanka. The International Cricket Council (ICC) has removed Bangladesh from the marquee tournament after the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) refused to play in India, citing security concerns. Bangladesh is now replaced by Scotland in Group C of the tournament. "We are waiting for the government's advice and whatever the government tells us to do we will do it. If they don't want us to go for the World Cup, we will follow it," Naqvi told Pakistan players and head coach Mike Hesson during a meeting, which was held after the squad announcement. Salman Ali Agha has been named as Pakistan's captain for the global showpiece. During the meeting, Naqvi briefed the players about the PCB's policy on the issue of Bangladesh being excluded from the T20 World Cup 2026 because of their unwillingness to travel to India because of security concerns. He also told the players that the Bangladesh stance of not wanting to play their matches in India was a principled one. "We firmly reject the double standards of the ICC," Naqvi was quoted as saying in the PCB statement. Bangladesh's move triggered after its pacer Mustafizur Rahman was released by the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) squad for the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026. Earlier, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had asked KKR to release Rahman following the minority atrocities in Bangladesh. The T20 World Cup 2026 is all set to kick off from February 7 to March 8 and will be co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka. Agha-led men will begin their T20 World Cup 2026 campaign by playing a clash against the Netherlands on February 7 at the Sinhalese Sports Club Cricket Ground in Sri Lanka. The high-octane match between arch-rivals, India and Pakistan, is scheduled to be played on February 15 at the R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium in Colombo. Pakistan's squad for the T20 World Cup 2026 Salman Ali Agha (C), Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Khawaja Mohammad Nafay (wk), Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Salman Mirza, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan (wk), Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shadab Khan, Usman Khan (wk) and Usman Tariq. (With PTI Inputs)
25 January,2026 08:05 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentIn the third T20I match against New Zealand, Team India skipper Suryakumar Yadav won the toss and elected to bowl first at the Barsapara Stadium in Guwahati. The "Men in Blue" will enter the clash with two major changes, where Arshdeep Singh and Varun Chakaravarthy have been rested, and Jasprit Bumrah and Ravi Bishnoi come in their place. After winning the toss, the hosts' skipper Suryakumar said, "We’re choosing to bowl first again as the surface looks good and there’s likely to be dew later, which helps while chasing. My message to the team was simple—repeat the good habits, stay fearless, and trust yourselves in the middle. The batters and bowlers out there know best what’s happening on the field, so backing their decisions is important. Having all-around options like Shivam, Hardik, and occasionally Abhishek gives our attack valuable flexibility. Hardik has delivered that balance for years, and Shivam adding those overs recently is a huge plus for us. We’ve made two changes today: Arshdeep and Varun get a rest, while Jasprit Bumrah and Ravi Bishnoi return". The "Black Caps" have made one change with Zakary Foulkes missing out on the match, and Kyle Jamieson coming in. "We expect the pitch to play well again, so the plan is to assess conditions quickly and post a strong total. I felt we batted impressively in the last match, but India’s power hitting put us under real pressure with the ball. In T20s, you take the lessons you can and move on fast because every venue brings something different. It’s about turning up, reading the surface, and adapting immediately to what the game demands. Neesham was supposed to play this one, but he’s unwell, so Jamieson comes in for Foulkes. Hopefully the changes give us the balance we need for tonight," said New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner. The visitors will be eager to register their first win to keep the series alive, whereas the hosts will aim to seal the series. Currently, Team India is leading the five-match T20I series by 2-0 against New Zealand. IND vs NZ 3rd T20I: Confirmed Playing XI India: Sanju Samson (WK), Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav (C), Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Ravi Bishnoi. New Zealand: Devon Conway (WK), Tim Seifert, Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell, Mitchell Santner (C), Kyle Jamieson, Matt Henry, Ish Sodhi, Jacob Duffy.
25 January,2026 07:04 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentEngland's stalwart Joe Root heaped praise on head coach Brendon McCullum by saying that he is one of the best coaches he has worked with, despite a disappointing outing in the concluded Ashes series. He is also hopeful that the current England can accomplish new achievements. The "Three Lions" suffered a series loss by 1-4 against Australia. "I think Baz is one of the best coaches I've ever worked with. Obviously, we're disappointed with the way things went out in Australia, but I still think there's a lot more really exciting things to come from this group," said Root. The right-handed batsman also credited Brendon McCullum for helping him sharpen his batting skills. "If you look at my own personal game, the time that he's been the coach, it's improved tenfold," he said. The cricketer then expressed gratitude for working with a "great" group of people and keep improving under brilliant minds. "Obviously, it's more fun when you win. But I'm still having the best time of my life. I get to turn up and do the thing that I love every day with a great group of people, some brilliant minds and some experts that you can constantly keep improving and developing under," said the 35-year-old cricketer. England will soon engage in the upcoming T20 World Cup 2026. The marquee tournament is scheduled to kick off from February 7 to March 8. They are placed in Group C of the tournament along with teams such as Italy, Nepal, Scotland, and the West Indies. The "Three Lions" will open their global showpiece campaign by playing a clash against Nepal on February 8 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Earlier, the International Cricket Council (ICC) removed Bangladesh from the tournament after its refusal to play their matches in India, citing security concerns. The ICC then replaced the Bengal Tigers with Scotland in Group C. England's squad for the T20 World Cup 2026 Ben Duckett, Harry Brook (C), Jacob Bethell, Tom Banton, Jamie Overton, Liam Dawson, Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Jos Buttler (WK), Phil Salt (WK), Adil Rashid, Jofra Archer, Josh Tongue, Luke Wood, Rehan Ahmed. (With ANI Inputs)
25 January,2026 06:23 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentAhead of the T20 World Cup 2026, Pakistan named a 15-man squad for the event. Earlier, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief Mohsin Naqvi had stated to boycott the marquee event in order to express solidarity with Bangladesh. Naqvi had suggested pulling out of the tournament after the International Cricket Council (ICC) replaced Bangladesh with Scotland following their refusal to play matches in India, citing security concerns. Salman Ali Agha is set to lead the "Green Shirts" in the upcoming marquee tournament. The T20 World Cup 2026 is all set to kick off from February 7 to March 8 and will be co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka. After Bangladesh's removal, Naqvi said that Pakistan's government will take a call on its participation in the mega event. Pakistan will play all of their T20 World Cup 2026 matches in Sri Lanka. The squad was announced during a press conference addressed by the PCB's High Performance Director and member of the men's national team selection committee, Aqib Javed, Agha, and white-ball head coach Michael James Hesson at the Gaddafi Stadium. They are placed in Group A of the tournament along with teams such as India, Namibia, the Netherlands, and the United States of America (USA). Agha-led men will begin their T20 World Cup 2026 campaign by playing a clash against the Netherlands on February 7 at the Sinhalese Sports Club Cricket Ground in Sri Lanka. The high-octane match between arch-rivals, India and Pakistan, is scheduled to be played on February 15 at the R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium in Colombo. The selectors have included two specialist spinners in the T20 World Cup squad, including Abrar Ahmed and mystery spinner Usman Tariq, who has made limited international appearances for the national side. Besides Abrar and Usman, the squad features spin all-rounders Mohammad Nawaz, Shadab Khan and Saim Ayub. Pakistan's squad for the T20 World Cup 2026 Salman Ali Agha (C), Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Khawaja Mohammad Nafay (wk), Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Salman Mirza, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan (wk), Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shadab Khan, Usman Khan (wk) and Usman Tariq. (With PTI Inputs)
25 January,2026 03:46 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentLegendary Australian opener Matthew Hayden’s daughter Grace has been making waves in the world of sports since becoming a TV presenter in 2022. The 23-year-old also boasts an equally impressive social media presence with over seven lakh followers (709,000), and has caught the eyes of her fans once again while hosting Extraaa Serve, the Australian Open TV show in India. Grace has been sharing pictures of herself while in the studio, with one particular snap getting all the love from her fans. The picture features the Australian in a stunning light-blue colour, low-cut floral dress, accompanied with the caption: “Butterfly energy today.” One Instagram user called her “drop dead gorgeous,” while another said, “looking stunning.”
25 January,2026 09:30 AM IST | Mumbai | A CorrespondentA dominant Mumbai closed in on an outright win with bonus point against Hyderabad on the third day of their Ranji Trophy Elite Group D clash, reducing the hosts to 166 for seven after enforcing follow-on here on Saturday. Lanky spinner Himanshu Singh returned with superb figures of 27-10-39-3 while pacer Tushar Deshpande (2-68) and Mohit Avasthi (2-54) chipped in as well, bowling out Hyderabad for 267 in their first innings after the hosts had resumed the third day’s play on 138-2 in reply to Mumbai’s 560. Hyderabad conceded a huge lead of 293 runs. Meanwhile, India pacer Mohammed Shami’s 5-51 put Bengal on the verge of an outright victory with a bonus point against Services. Shami produced a fine effort as Services were left reeling on 231 for eight with another 102 runs in deficit. Brief scoresMumbai 560 vs Hyderabad 267 all out (R Singh 96; H Singh 3-39, M Avasthi 2-54, T Deshpande 2-68) & 166-7 (K Himateja 43; M Avasthi 3-31, M Khan 3-38) This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
25 January,2026 09:22 AM IST | Hyderabad | PTIThe ICC has pushed Bangladesh out of the upcoming T20 World Cup, bringing in Scotland after BCB refused to let its team travel to India citing security concerns in the wake of Mustafizur Rahman’s ouster from the IPL. Scotland’s entry ended the month-long suspense after the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) repeatedly insisted that their matches be shifted to Sri Lanka and even suggested their group being swapped with Ireland. The Irish Cricket board, however, categorically dismissed the suggestion. At the ICC Board meeting, Bangladesh were taken to the cleaners with an overwhelming 14-2 verdict in favour of the Tigers travelling to India for their games. The ICC gave the BCB a 24-hour deadline to change its stance, but with Asif Nazrul being adamant, the cricket crazy nation’s hopes of playing the T20 World Cup went up in smoke. It has been learnt that top ICC official,s including chairman Jay Shah, were in Dubai on Friday and late evening an e-mail was sent to BCB chairman Aminul Islam Bulbul informing him about the global body’s decision. The implications of this unceremonious ouster will also badly hit BCB’s coffers. The board will lose USD 500,000 (R4.5 crore) participation fee that each nation gets. But the bigger potential loss will be ICC’s annual revenue. ZeroNo. of ICC senior titles won by Bangladesh Rs 4.5 crParticipation fee Bangladesh stand to lose following their ouster from the T20 World Cup This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
25 January,2026 09:19 AM IST | New Delhi | PTIPakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi on Saturday said the Pakistan government will take the final and binding decision on whether its national team will participate in the T20 World Cup, following Bangladesh’s removal from the tournament. Addressing a press conference here, Naqvi said the matter would be placed before Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, who is currently out of the country, once he returns. “Whether we play in the T20 World Cup or not, the decision will be taken by the government. Our PM [Shahbaz Sharif] is out of the country. When he comes, we will take advice from him. The decision by the government will be final and binding and if they say no then they [ICC] may invite any other team,” Naqvi said. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
25 January,2026 09:16 AM IST | Lahore | AgenciesSkipper Ayush Mhatre’s 27-ball 53 underlined India’s another dominant show as they notched a crushing seven-wicket victory via DLS method over New Zealand in the U-19 World Cup here on Saturday. An all-round India won a truncated game of 37-overs-per-side with complete ease, stamping their authority in the competition with another big victory. Chasing a revised target of 130, India made 130-3 in a mere 13.3 overs to record their third consecutive win and top Group B. RS Ambrish (8-1-29-4) and Henil Patel (7.2-1-23-3) led the bowling charge early for India who had asked New Zealand to bat first in damp conditions of the rain-truncated game. Kiwis were all out for 135 in 36.2 overs. In reply, India lost Aaron George (7) early, but Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (40 off 23 balls) and Mhatre led the response with a robust 76-run stand for the second wicket. Brief scoresNZ 135 all out in 36.2 overs (C Samson 37*; RS Ambrish 4-29, H Patel 3-23) lost to India 130-3 in 13.3 overs (A Mhatre 53, V Sooryavanshi 40) by seven wickets This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
25 January,2026 09:13 AM IST | Bulawayo | PTIIshan Kishan’s sensational comeback will reignite debate over who should be Abhishek Sharma’s preferred opening partner with Sanju Samson’s increasing struggles as the hosts look to seal the five-match T20I series vs New Zealand in the third game here today. Kishan’s 76 has intensified the spotlight on Samson. For NZ, it remains to be seen how they bounce back after the walloping. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
25 January,2026 09:11 AM IST | Guwahati | PTIAfter playing a match-winning knock of 76 in 32 balls, Player of the Match Ishan Kishan underlined how scoring runs in domestic cricket helped answer his own doubts, rebuild confidence, and carry momentum into the international arena during the second T20I against New Zealand here on Friday. India successfully chased down the target of 209 with seven wickets in hand and 28 balls to spare to record their joint-highest successful chase in T20Is. Made most of Powerplay Kishan explained that chasing a big total required calm decision-making, stressing the importance of watching the ball closely, avoiding unnecessary risks, and making the most of the Powerplay. “I was focusing more on what I needed to do and being in a good headspace for this game. Sometimes, [when] you are batting well, you just have to be in a good headspace. You just try to watch the ball and play good shots. We were looking to not take any risks and not go cross-batted. When you are chasing 200-plus, you need runs in the Powerplay as well,” Kishan said. The blistering knock came on the back of a strong domestic season. During the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy campaign, Jharkhand skipper Kishan topped the charts with 517 runs and played a decisive role in the final against Haryana, where he struck a blistering century. “I was just looking to score runs. Sometimes, it is important to do it for yourself so you can answer questions about how you are batting. If you are capable of playing for India, that’s why it was very important for me to score runs in domestic cricket. The good part is that we won the trophy as well. Batting here, I took the same confidence.” ‘Answered my own questions’ Reflecting on his time out of the national side, Kishan revealed a moment of self-belief, saying he trusted his ability to bat deep and play impactful innings, and only needed runs to reaffirm that belief. “I just asked myself one question: Can I do it again or not? I had a clear answer in my head. I feel I can bat throughout the innings and play good shots. I just needed to get runs somewhere to answer my questions. Even if I got out, I just wanted to play good cricket, that was it,” he said. 517No. of runs scored by Ishan Kishan in 10 matches of the last edition of the SMAT @ 57.44 — the most by any player This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
25 January,2026 09:08 AM IST | Raipur | IANSADVERTISEMENT
