Pakistan T20 captain Salman Ali Agha has made it clear that the team will not see any major changes before the upcoming T20 World Cup, saying the management will continue with the same combination.
Speaking to the PCB podcast, he said, “I do not think there will be any major changes before the World Cup. We will go with the same combination. All players have been given their roles and we will move forward with those roles.”
“We have six matches before the T20 World Cup and we need to play with consistency in those games,” he added.
The national captain explained that the team cannot afford big changes at this stage. “We cannot make major changes in six matches. We have played with these players for the last six months and the results have started to come,” he said.
Sharing his long-term ambitions, Salman said, “I want us to win the T20 World Cup in 2026 and then the ODI World Cup in 2027. Winning both these World Cups is my dream. If that happens, I will be very happy.”
He also confirmed that Pakistan will play the next T20 World Cup under his leadership. “So far, the T20 World Cup will be played under my captaincy. Senior players understand Sri Lankan pitches well, while the Sri Lanka series before the World Cup will help the new players.”
Salman stressed the importance of the Sri Lanka series before the tournament. “The series against Sri Lanka before the World Cup will be very important for us and we will take it seriously. I believe the Pakistan team is now on the right track, but we still need improvement. Where people and we want to see this team, we will reach there soon,” he said.
He added that the team has prepared with the T20 World Cup in mind over the last six months. “We still have six matches before the World Cup and we will try to improve further in those games.”
Talking about workload and fitness, Salman pointed out that he played 56 international matches in 11 months. “So fitness is very important. Pakistan has a lot of cricket in the next three to four months. I am not playing in leagues to keep myself fresh.”
Salman also opened up about the pressure of captaincy. “If you are the captain of Pakistan, pressure is always there. At one point, the pressure affected me, but now I have learned to handle both captaincy and batting together,” he said.
He also spoke positively about Babar Azam. “I have always seen Babar Azam as a friend. I have never looked at him only as a big batter,” he added.
The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 is scheduled to begin on 7 February 2026 and run until 8 March 2026.
Pakistan national cricket team will open its campaign on the very first day, 7 February 2026, against Netherlands at Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo.