Farhan Named Captain as Pakistan Announce Squad for U19 Asia Cup 2026 Title Defence

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has named a 15-player squad for the ACC Men’s U19 Asia Cup 2026, which will take place in Oman from November 5 to 14.

Pakistan will enter the tournament as defending champions and have been drawn in Group A with India, Nepal and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Farhan Yousuf will captain the team, with Abdul Qadir and Hamza Zahoor selected as wicketkeeper-batters. Apart from them, the group also includes specialist top and middle order batters including Usman Khan, Hayam Khan, Jahangir Bilal and Huzaifa Ahsan.

In the bowling attack, the team has selected four express pacers, including Abdul Subhan, Mohammad Seyam, Ali Raza and Rizwanullah. Meanwhile, in the spin department, the team has picked a variety of options to bring more diversity in bowling, such as Mohammad Huzaifa and Niqab Shafiq.

Interestingly, Pakistan have retained most of the players who defeated England in the Youth ODI series in September. Ali Raza and Huzaifa Ahsan are the only two names in the Asia Cup squad who were not part of that 3-1 series win.

The young Pakistan side will be aiming for back-to-back titles after winning the previous U19 Asia Cup in the UAE. They crushed India by 191 runs in the final, played at the ICC Academy Ground in Dubai.

Their campaign is set to start on November 6 against the UAE, followed by a meeting with India two days later. Afterwards, Pakistan will wrap up their group matches against Nepal on November 10, with each game scheduled to start at 10 AM PKT.

Pakistan Squad for ACC Men’s U19 Asia Cup 2026

Farhan Yousuf (captain), Abdul Qadir (wicketkeeper), Abdul Subhan, Ahmed Hussain, Ali Raza, Hamza Zahoor (wicketkeeper), Hasnain Abbas Dar, Hayam Khan, Huzaifa Ahsan, Jahangir Bilal, Mohammad Huzaifa, Mohammad Seyam, Niqab Shafiq, Rizwanullah and Usman Khan.

Player Support Personnel

Shahid Anwar (head coach and team manager), Rao Iftikhar Anjum (fast-bowling coach), Zohaib Khan (spin-bowling coach), Humayun Farhat (fielding coach), Ubaid Ullah (physiotherapist), Ibrar Ahmed (trainer) and Ali Hamza (performance analyst).

Pakistan Team Fixtures at the ACC Men’s U19 Asia Cup 2026

• 6 November: Pakistan v UAE — OCA Ground 2
• 8 November: Pakistan v India — OCA Ground 1
• 10 November: Pakistan v Nepal — OCA Ground 1
• 12 November: Semi-finals
• 14 November: Final