Babar Azam has been left out as PCB named a 15-member Pakistan squad for the three-match ODI series in Bangladesh, starting March 11.
Shaheen Shah Afridi will continue as captain of the ODI team. Babar Azam, who had a disappointing T20 World Cup 2026, has been dropped from the squad. Saim Ayub also misses out. The team also includes six uncapped players. Abdul Samad, Maaz Sadaqat, Saad Masood, and Shamyl Hussain were part of the Pakistan Shaheens team that recently played against the England Lions in Abu Dhabi.
From the previous ODI series against Sri Lanka, the notable absentees are Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Saim Ayub, Naseem Shah, and Mohammad Nawaz.
Shaheen Shah Afridi (c), Abdul Samad, Abrar Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Faisal Akram, Haris Rauf, Hussain Talat, Maaz Sadaqat, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Muhammad Ghazi Ghori (wk), Saad Masood, Sahibzada Farhan, Salman Ali Agha and Shamyl Hussain.
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Pakistan have done decently in their recent ODI series. In the last three series, they won against Sri Lanka (home) and South Africa (home), but lost to West Indies (away) before that.
1st ODI – Wednesday, March 11, 2026
2nd ODI – Friday, March 13, 2026
3rd ODI – Sunday, March 15, 2026
In the group stage, Pakistan finished second, behind India, who topped the table. Out of four matches, Pakistan won three matches and lost one which was against India. They won against Netherlands, USA, and Namibia.
The Super 8 stage proved tougher. Pakistan managed only one win, beating Sri Lanka. The team faltered against England, and their match against New Zealand ended with no result due to rain. Despite finishing with the same points as New Zealand, Pakistan could not advance to the semi-finals because the Kiwis had a better net run rate than the 2009 champions.
Now the focus will shift to the ODI World Cup 2027, which will be held in South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Namibia. Pakistan have not qualified for the semi-finals of the tournament since 2011.
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