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Shadab Khan (L) and Saqlain Mushtaq (R) (Source: AFP/X)
Pakistan all-rounder Shadab Khan has been under fire for his poor outings in the T20 World Cup 2026. However, Shadab’s father-in-law and former Pakistan spinner, Saqlain Mushtaq, has continuously been defending him despite poor outings that cost Pakistan very crucial moments in the must-win matches.
Recently, Pakistan were knocked out of contention for the semi-finals after failing to restrict Sri Lanka to the given score as per the scenario in their last Super-8 game. Meanwhile, Shadab was hammered for 33 runs in just two overs at a highly expensive economy rate of 16.50.
Amidst an all-round criticism for Shadab Khan, Saqlain Mushtaq defiantly defended his son-in-law while speaking during PTV News’ show Game On Hai.
Mike Hesson didn't use Shadab Khan properly - Saqlain Mushtaq
Notably, Saqlain Mushtaq's defence of Shadab Khan seemed to be of the same audacity seen in his argument with former all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez. In his recent statement after Pakistan's World Cup exit, Saqlain Mushtaq threw the head coach, Mike Hesson, under the bus for not utilising Shadab Khan properly.
“Mike Hesson didn't use Shadab properly and demanded too much from him in both batting and bowling,” said Saqlain Mushtaq, placing the entire blame on the head coach for Shadab’s poor performance.
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“Look at how many wickets Axar Patel or [Mitchell] Santner took? It's not Shadab's fault. It's the coach’s fault for not using him properly,” he added later, equalling Shadab with the all-rounders like India’s Axar Patel and New Zealand’s Mitchell Santner," Saqlain Mushtaq further added.
Shadab Khan: A miserable wild-card entry for Pakistan
What actually fumed a lot of former Pakistan cricketers, experts and the fans was Shadab's wild-card into the T20 World Cup 2026 squad. His post-injury inclusion in the team was questioned, alongside a criticism of his performance credentials before the injury.
Speaking of his performances in the T20 World Cup 2026, he miserably failed to deliver both with the bat and ball. The 27-year-old could score just 118 runs in six innings at a below-par average of 23.60, without any half-century.
With the ball, Shadab has been the second most expensive bowler for Pakistan, following Shaheen Shah Afridi in their T20 World Cup 2026 campaign. Shadab Khan could pick only five wickets in five innings at an expensive economy rate of 8.44 and a poor bowling strike rate of 21.60.
Misery in marquee tournament continues for Pakistan with another embarrassing exit
Pakistan’s campaign in the T20 World Cup 2026 started with their campaign opener against the Netherlands. The Men in Green registered a victory by only three wickets in the game, which they had almost lost against the associate Dutch side.
Furthermore, they defeated the USA by 61 runs before losing by a massive 61-run margin to arch-rivals India. In their last group-stage match against Namibia, Salman Agha’s men won by 102 runs to secure a spot in the tournament’s Super-8 stage.
Pakistan’s first Super-8 fixture against New Zealand was washed out due to rain, with both teams sharing a point each. While taking on England in their next Super-8 clash, the World T20 2009 champions lost by two wickets.
They got life and a chance to qualify for the semi-finals when England defeated New Zealand in their last Super-8 fixture. But once again, Pakistan struggled to defend even the big total of 212 runs against Sri Lanka, where they had to restrict them to the score of 147 runs to qualify for the knockout stage.
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