Haris Rauf and Hasan Ali flying kites [Source: @ahtashamriaz22/x]Haris Rauf and Hasan Ali seem to be coping well after getting rejected by the Pakistan team for the ongoing 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka. Around the opening phase of the tournament, the two Pakistan speedsters were spotted flying kites together to celebrate the Basant festival. Haris Rauf and Hasan Ali were also accompanied by several of their friends as the two Pakistani rejects celebrated the Punjabi festival amidst their T20 World Cup snub. Haris Rauf and Hasan Ali find solace together while flying kites On Sunday, February 8, i.e., a short video of Pakistan’s rejected fast bowlers Haris Rauf and Hasan Ali went viral on social media. In a short 23-second clip, the two cricketers can be seen enthusiastically flying kites on a roof top along with their friends. Both Rauf and Ali celebrated the occasion with much fervor by dancing to the tunes of Daler Mehndi’s “Bolo Ta Ra Ra”.Ahtasham Riaz @ahtashamriaz22 Haris Rauf and Hassan Ali enjoying basant in Lahore 🪁#Basant2026 Feb 8, 2026, 1:34 AM Haris Rauf and Hasan Ali excluded from T20 World Cup 2026 squadHaris Rauf was one of the rare few Pakistani cricketers who came up clutch for his team in the recently-concluded BBL 2025-26 season. In a season where fellow Pakistan players like Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan and Shaheen Afridi all failed to leave a lasting impression, Rauf picked up 20 wickets in just 11 innings for the Melbourne Stars. The 32-year-old maintained an impressive bowling average of 16.75, and delivered strong match-winning performances against Sydney Thunder and Adelaide Strikers. Despite his impressive outing, the cricketer was excluded from Pakistan’s 2026 ICC T20 World Cup squad, reportedly at the behest of national coach Mike Nesson. The report further stated that Nesson based his decision against Haris Rauf owing to his dismal performance against Team India at the 2025 Asia Cup final last year in Dubai. Meanwhile, Hasan Ali has also fell out of Pakistan’s T20I contention off late. The cricketer last played a white-ball match for Pakistan back in August last year during a series in the UAE. The 2017 Champions Trophy winner has picked up 72 wickets in 56 T20I innings for Pakistan, but managed to clip just four scalps in his last two series combined. How is Pakistan faring at T20 World Cup 2026 so far without Rauf, Ali? In the absence of senior pacemen Haris Rauf and Hasan Ali, the Pakistan team started off the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup with a hard-fought win against Netherlands. “Premier fast bowler” Shaheen Afridi went wicketless with the new ball, and spinners Mohammad Nawaz, Abrar Ahmed and Saim Ayub picked up six between them to skittle Netherlands from 105-3 to 147 all out. In response, Pakistan crashed from 98-2 to 114-7 at the start of the 17th over of the run chase. With all their top-order and middle-order batters back in the sheds, hard-hitting fast bowler Faheem Ashraf pulled Pakistan out of jail with a cracking 11-ball 29*. Pakistan will now face the USA in match number 12 of the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup on February 10 in Colombo.
