Abdul Samad to captain Pakistan Shaheens in Asia Cup Rising Stars

The Pakistan Cricket Board has announced the Pakistan Shaheens squad for the 50-over ACC Men's Asia Cup Rising Stars 2026, to be played in Qatar from 19 to 29 November. Abdul Samad will captain the side, which are the defending champions.

The batting group is made up of Hasan Nawaz, Maaz Sadaqat, Shamyl Hussain, Haider Ali, Shahzaib Khan and Farhan Yousuf. Rohail Nazir is the designated wicket-keeper.

The spin department consists of Danish Aziz, Saad Masood and Sufyan Moqim. Mohammad Hasnain leads the pace attack, which also includes Ahmed Daniyal, Akif Javed and Muhammad Imran Randhawa.

The eight-team event places Pakistan Shaheens in Group B alongside India A, Nepal and the United Arab Emirates. Group A has Afghanistan A, Bangladesh A, Hong Kong China and Sri Lanka A.

Pakistan Shaheens play UAE on 20 November, India A on 22 November and Nepal on 24 November. The semi-finals are on 26 and 27 November, and the final is on Sunday, 29 November.

According to The Express Tribune, the first match is a day fixture at the University of Doha Ground, while the other matches are day-night. The report names two different venues for the day-night games, Eden Park International Stadium on one page and West End Park International Cricket Stadium in its schedule.

Shaheens are defending champions in both the 50-over and T20 formats of the event. They won the 2023 50-over edition in Sri Lanka by beating India A by 128 runs, and took the previous T20 title by beating Bangladesh A in a final decided by a super over. The Express Tribune noted that Ahmed Daniyal was their super-over hero in that edition.

The Express Tribune also reported that Pakistan were runners-up in the 2013 and 2017 editions and won the 2019 edition.