Pakistan Playing XI Vs Sri Lanka, T20 World Cup 2026, Super 8- Fakhar Zaman Replaced?

Pakistan playing XI Vs Sri Lanka [Source: AFP]

Pakistan will once again have to depend on “Qudrat ka Nizam”, as the Men in Green face a stern test against Sri Lanka in their final Super 8 match of the T20 World Cup. Pakistan’s journey in the World Cup has been topsy-turvy, as the team barely scraped past the Netherlands, lost badly against India, and won against the USA and Namibia.

In the Super 8 clash against England, Harry Brook single-handedly destroyed the Pakistan attack. The team now has to win their last match against Sri Lanka, and also depends on the England-New Zealand match result to secure a place in the semis.

However, the team has lacked consistency in their performance, and several players have underperformed. For the do-or-die match against the Lankan Lions, the team needs to make a couple of changes, and here’s how they could lineup for the crucial game.

Pakistan playing XI Vs Sri Lanka- T20 World Cup 2026

Openers and top order: Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Salman Agha

Pakistan’s openers are sorted with Sahibzada Farhan, and Saim Ayub forming a solid opening duo. While Sahibzada has done extremely well and has been one of the top performers in the T20 World Cup so far, Saim Ayub has been the complete opposite.

In six T20 World Cup games, he has only racked up 70 runs, with a strike rate of 137. However, Pakistan will still persist with him due to his ability to take wickets inside the powerplay with his off-break deliveries.

Captain Salman Agha, who performed well in the T20I series against Australia, promoted himself at number 3, but that move failed to deliver as he has struggled to score quick runs and has been a disappointment. However, the team management will continue to persist with him at 3, as there is no other choice for that slot.

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Middle-order and all-rounders: Babar Azam, Khawaja Nafay, Usman Khan, Mohammad Nawaz

On paper, Babar Azam should be the first name dropped from the playing XI, but for some reason, the team management has shown full trust in his ability. Despite repetitive failures, Salman Agha has backed Babar, and expect the trend to continue against Sri Lanka as well.

He is playing out of position (number 4), but this could be the final T20I game for Babar to prove his worth in the game’s shortest format.

However, one change the team could potentially make is bring back Khawaja Nafay in the lineup in place of Fakhar Zaman. The left-handed batter has been in and out of the team, as he was picked for the England clash, but the batter couldn't score big.

Nafay is a talented player, and the team might need an explosive batter in the middle-order to counter the Sri Lankan spinners.

Apart from them, Usman Khan, and Mohammad Nawaz will play the roles of finisher at number 6, and 7.

Bowlers: Shaheen Afridi, Salman Mirza, Abrar Ahmed, Usman Tariq

Shaheen Afridi, who was dropped for the Namibia clash, made his triumphant return against England as he scalped four wickets and single-handedly kept Pakistan alive in the match. He will be partnered by Salman Mirza, the fellow left-arm pacer.

However, one key change which the team must make is bring back Abrar Ahmed to replace Shadab Khan. For the match vs England, Pakistan went with only three front-line bowlers (Shaheen, Tariq, Mirza), and that cost them the game.

Shadab failed to deliver the goods against England, and was taken to the cleaners. Hence, instead of a part-time bowler, the team should include Abrar, who has a stellar record against Sri Lanka.

He will be partnered by the mystery bowler, Usman Tariq, as the Sri Lankan batters will have a tough task in front of them.

Pakistan likely playing XI Vs Sri Lanka- T20 World Cup 2026

Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Salman Agha(c), Babar Azam, Khawaja Nafay, Usman Khan(w), Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi, Abrar Ahmed, Salman Mirza, Usman Tariq

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