Category: Top News

LAHORE: The trophy for the three-match T20I series between Pakistan and Australia has been unveiled here at the Gaddafi Stadium on Wednesday.

Pakistan skipper Salman Ali Agha and Australia’s captain Mitchell March posed with the trophy ahead of the pre-series press conference.

The series which serves as a dress rehearsal for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, will begin on 29 January at the Gaddafi Stadium.

All three fixtures of the series will be played at the same venue, with the toss scheduled for 3:30 pm PKT.

 

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The T20I series will mark only Australia’s second series in the format on Pakistani soil after a solitary T20I in April 2022 at Gaddafi Stadium.

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Salman Ali Agha will continue lead the Pakistan side while Australia could be without their captain Marsh.

According to reports, Marsh and wicketkeeper-batter Josh Inglis are unlikely to feature in the opening match after arriving in Pakistan only on Wednesday, just days after their Perth Scorchers lifted a record-extending sixth Big Bash League title on Sunday.

With Marsh sitting out, Head will take charge of Australia for only the second time in his career. His only previous stint as T20I captain came in Cardiff in 2024, when he led Australia against England.

Pakistan squad

 Salman Ali Agha (c), Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Khawaja Mohammad Nafay (wk), Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Salman Mirza, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan (wk), Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shadab Khan, Usman Khan (wk) and Usman Tariq.

Australia squad

Mitch Marsh (c), Sean Abbott, Xavier Bartlett, Mahli Beardman, Cooper Connolly, Ben Dwarshuis, Jack Edwards, Cameron Green, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kuhnemann, Mitch Owen, Josh Philippe, Matthew Renshaw, Matt Short, Marcus Stoinis and Adam Zampa.

READ: Babar Azam, Saim Ayub climb ICC rankings ahead of Australia T20Is

KARACHI: Rashid Naseem on Wednesday became the first Pakistani athlete to set 150 individual Guinness World Records (GWR), the global authority on record-breaking achievements confirmed.

Rashid etched his name into history book after shattering multiple record, including 340 full-extension punches in one minute while holding a 1-kg weight.

He also registered unique records to his name in egg-and-walnut and nunchaku categories.  The all records are now listed on Guinness World Record official website.

In 2025 alone, 31 records have been approved, after 28 records in 2024. He dedicated his 150th record to Palestine.

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Despite bringing global recognition to Pakistan, Rashid Naseem says he has received no government appreciation.

It is worth mentioning that Rashid also holds world records across punching, martial arts, breaking, knee strikes, stick, nunchaku, skipping, and jumping jacks, and has defeated India over 40 times, also breaking records from China, USA, England, Iran, and Switzerland.

For those unaware, Guinness World Records also highlighted Rashid and his daughter achievements on its official page as part of the 70th anniversary celebrations held in November 2025.

READ: Salman Ali Agha defends Babar Azam despite below-par BBL

DUBAI: Pakistan batters Babar Azam and Saim Ayub have received a timely boost in the latest ICC T20I batting rankings, released ahead of the Green Shirts’ home series against Australia.

Pakistan are set to host Australia in a three-match T20I series, beginning tomorrow, which will serve as the national side’s final assignment before the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026.

According to the updated ICC rankings, Babar Azam has climbed one place to 31st, while Saim Ayub made a two-position jump to move into joint 35th.

Saim now shares the spot with West Indies batter Brandon King, who also made a significant improvement, climbing 15 places to reach the same position.

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Sahibzada Farhan continues to be Pakistan’s highest-ranked batter in the format, holding firm at fifth in the T20I batting rankings. Meanwhile, Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha is currently placed at 41st.

Pakistan also witnessed gains in the bowling charts as Abrar Ahmed improved by one spot and is now placed joint fourth, alongside New Zealand pacer Jacob Duffy.

Fast bowler Salman Mirza also moved up by one place to sit at 18th. However, all-rounder Mohammad Nawaz slipped two places, dropping to 15th in the latest update.

Meanwhile, Saim Ayub also registered progress in bowling rankings, improving by one place to reach 54th.

READ: Salman Ali Agha defends Babar Azam despite below-par BBL

LAHORE: Pakistan T20I captain Salman Ali Agha on Wednesday came out strongly in defence of star batter Babar Azam ahead of the national team’s three-match series against Australia, set to begin on Thursday at the Gaddafi Stadium.

Salman addressed the media in Lahore a day before the opening match of the three-game series, which will be played from January 29 to February 1 at the same venue.

During the press conference, Salman was asked whether Babar could regain form after a below-par Big Bash League (BBL) 15 campaign for Sydney Sixers, where he scored 202 runs in 11 matches, averaging 22.44 with a strike rate of 103.06.

However, the Pakistan captain dismissed the concern, stating that Babar’s performances for Pakistan matter more than what he does in the BBL, insisting the franchise cricket form should not be used to judge his value.

“I wish someday I attend a press conference and not get asked about Babar Azam,” Salman said. “You [media] need to leave him and let him play his game, and also focus on other players.”

“Look, I agree Babar did not play as per expectations in the BBL, but for us, he has been a proven performer always, so I have no issues. For me, it only matters how he plays for Pakistan. What he does in the BBL does not matter to me.”

Babar, who remains one of Pakistan’s most reliable batters in the format, played eight T20Is in 2025, scoring 206 runs at an impressive average of 34.33, including two half-centuries.

His strike rate, however, remained under scrutiny, standing at 114.44.

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Salman Ali Agha also spoke about Pakistan’s approach in home conditions, highlighting how scoring patterns change depending on pitches and match situations.

“We have scored more than 200 in these conditions as well, you can see last year’s Bangladesh series,” he said. “But when you don’t get that kind of batting condition, then scoring big becomes difficult.”

The Pakistan captain stressed that modern T20 cricket has become highly competitive, leaving no room for complacency.

“In T20 cricket, there is no big or small team,” Salman said. “In international cricket, no team is easy.”

Calling the Australia series “very important,” Salman said Pakistan would look to address the shortcomings in their game and execute roles according to conditions.

“This series against Australia is very important,” he said. “We will try to cover the gaps in our game. We all know our roles, how we have to play according to the conditions.”

Notably, the three-match T20I series will serve as crucial preparation for both teams ahead of the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026.

READ: Jason Gillespie appointed head coach of PSL’s new Hyderabad franchise

Former Australia fast bowler Jason Gillespie has been officially named the head coach of the Hyderabad franchise ahead of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) season 11, scheduled to begin on March 26.

Hyderabad is one of the two new franchises added to the PSL roster ahead of season 11, with Sialkot Stallionz being the other new entrant.

The Hyderabad franchise is owned by Fawad Sarwar’s Kingsmen group and was secured through the PSL auction with a winning bid of Rs 1.75 billion ($6.25 million).

The announcement for the head coach was made through the Kingsmen Cricket social media handle, where the franchise shared a graphic featuring Gillespie along with a statement confirming his appointment.

“Vision clear. Direction locked. Entering a New Era. Jason Gillespie takes charge as Head Coach of Hyderabad,” the post read.

Vision clear. Direction locked. Entering a #NewEra ⚡️

𝗝𝗮𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝗚𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗶𝗲 takes charge as Head Coach of Hyderabad in #HBLPSL 🙌

Welcome to the family, Coach 🤝 pic.twitter.com/aLqSLF94gT

— Kingsmen Cricket (@KingsmenCricket) January 28, 2026

The 50-year-old has previously worked in Pakistan cricket and was appointed as head coach of the national Test side in April 2024.

However, his stint was short-lived as he resigned ahead of Pakistan’s two-match Test series in South Africa in December 2024, amid reports of differences with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and difficulties in aligning with the team management.

Notably, the Hyderabad management is yet to officially unveil its team name and logo for the tournament.

READ: Platinum category renewals announced ahead of PSL 11 player auction

Amanda Anisimova said she will “lose her mind” for a couple of days after suffering defeat in her Australian Open quarter-final on Wednesday to fellow American Jessica Pegula.

The 24-year-old Anisimova’s hopes of a third Grand Slam final in a row imploded in a blur of unforced errors and with several angry shows of frustration.

Sixth-seeded Pegula beat the fourth seed 6-2, 7-6 (7/1) in Melbourne, and Anisimova admitted her opponent was “playing great tennis. She’s always playing stable”.

But Anisimova was annoyed with herself too, as she totted up 44 unforced errors to Pegula’s 21 and made seven double faults.

At one moment in the second set, she had her head in her hands as the match slipped away.

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The defeat and the nature of it will rankle, especially because she was considered a serious challenger for the title.

“I would say as a tennis player, you can be very irrational, and obviously I’m very grateful for the life that I have, the career I have,” said Anisimova, who in 2023 took an eight-month break from tennis for her mental health.

“But you kind of lose your mind after matches like this.

“I think that after a day like today, I’m going to completely lose all sense of rationality for, like, 48 hours.

“That’s just kind of what goes into working so hard for something, and then you have matches and days like this.”

Pegula’s reward is a semi-final meeting with the Kazakh fifth seed Elena Rybakina.

READ: Pegula edges past Anisimova to set up semi-final against Rybakina

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has unveiled a five-member commentary panel for the upcoming T20I series against Australia.

The series will be played at the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore, from 29 January to 1 February. The games will start at 4pm PKT with the coin toss set to take place at 3.30pm PST.

Notably, former Australia Test batter Simon Katich is set to return to Pakistan as a commentator for the three-match series. He last visited Pakistan in March 2022 to call the three-match Test series.

Katich will be joined in the commentary box by ex-Pakistan Test captains Aamir Sohail and Ramiz Raja, alongside former Test batter Bazid Khan.

Former Pakistan women’s team captain Urooj Mumtaz also completes the five-member commentary panel for the series.

Zainab Abbas is set to be the presenter for the PCB’s famous PitchSide Studio, as the viewers will soak in the expert analysis during the pre- and post-match shows of all three matches at the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore.

The High-Definition broadcast coverage of the series will be carried out with the help of 28 cameras, which also include buggy cam. HawkEye and UltraEdge will be part of the Decision Review System (DRS) Technology.

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Moreover, ICC International Panel Match Referee Ali Naqvi will lead the playing control team in all three matches.

The second game will be his 50th T20I as match referee, as he officiated his first game in the format at the same venue in April 2023.

Ahsan Raza, member of the ICC Elite Panel of Umpires, will be one of the on-field umpires during the first two T20Is, while Asif Yaqoob of the ICC Emerging Panel of Umpires and Rashid Riaz of the ICC International Panel of Umpires will join him on the field in the first and second T20Is, respectively.

Rashid, the fourth umpire in the first T20I, will join Nasir Hussain of the ICC International Panel of Umpires in the third T20I to perform the on-field duties with PCB National Elite Panel of Umpires member Zulfiqar Jan being the fourth umpire.

Apart from being the fourth umpire in the second game, Nasir will begin the series as the third umpire, while Asif and Tariq Rasheed of the PCB National Elite Panel of Umpires will perform the third umpire duties in the second and third T20I, respectively.

READ: Mitchell Marsh unlikely to play first T20I against Pakistan, stand-in captain named

LAHORE: Australia opener Travis Head is set to captain the visitors in the first T20I against Pakistan on Thursday at the Gaddafi Stadium, with regular skipper Mitchell Marsh set to be rested for the series opener.

According to Australian media reports, Marsh and wicketkeeper-batter Josh Inglis are unlikely to feature in the opening match after arriving in Pakistan only on Wednesday, just days after their Perth Scorchers lifted a record-extending sixth Big Bash League title on Sunday.

With Marsh sitting out, Head will take charge of Australia for only the second time in his career. His only previous stint as T20I captain came in Cardiff in 2024, when he led Australia against England.

Australia’s preparations have also been hit by multiple absences, with Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Tim David and Nathan Ellis all ruled out through injury.

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Meanwhile, star all-rounder Glenn Maxwell has been rested as he focuses on the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, which begins next week.

The second and third T20Is of the series will also be played at the Gaddafi Stadium on January 31 and February 1, respectively.

The three-match series serves as key preparation for both sides ahead of the T20 World Cup, set to be co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka from February 7 to March 8.

Pakistan have been drawn in Group A alongside India, USA, the Netherlands and Namibia, while Australia will compete in Group B with Sri Lanka, Ireland, Zimbabwe and Oman.

Australia squad

Mitch Marsh (c), Sean Abbott, Xavier Bartlett, Mahli Beardman, Cooper Connolly, Ben Dwarshuis, Jack Edwards, Cameron Green, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kuhnemann, Mitch Owen, Josh Philippe, Matthew Renshaw, Matt Short, Marcus Stoinis and Adam Zampa.

READ: Platinum category renewals announced ahead of PSL 11 player auction

Jessica Pegula edged past Amanda Anisimova to set up an Australian Open semi-final clash against Elena Rybakina, where Novak Djokovic hopes to join them later Wednesday in his latest history bid.

Moscow-born Kazakh Rybakina, the 2022 Wimbledon champion, stunned second seed Iga Swiatek 7-5, 6-1 in Melbourne to book her spot in the last four.

Pegula swept aside an error-strewn Amanda Anisimova 6-2, 7-6 (7/1) in an all-American quarter-final.

Rybakina has made the Melbourne final once before, in 2023, when she lost in three tough sets to Aryna Sabalenka.

The 26-year-old fifth seed took her latest victory in her stride, saying a calmer mindset helped in the heat of battle.

“In the beginning, when it’s the first final, and you go so far in a tournament, of course, you are more emotional,” said Rybakina.

“Now I feel like I’m just doing my job, trying to improve each day. So it’s kind of another day, another match.”

Defeat denied Swiatek in her latest bid for a career Grand Slam of all four majors, having already won Wimbledon, the French Open and the US Open.

Sixth seed Jessica Pegula and Elena Rybakina have shared three wins each in their six matches so far.

Pegula is yet to drop a set this year in Melbourne and is arrowing in on her first major crown at the age of 31.

“It’s awesome,” Pegula said of reaching her first Australian semi-final, having beaten defending champion Madison Keys in the previous round.

She was helped by an error-riddled display from fourth seed Anisimova, who racked up 44 unforced errors to Pegula’s 21.

Her frustrations boiled over at the end as her hopes of reaching a third major title in a row melted away in a blur of mistakes.

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Two-time champion Sabalenka faces Ukrainian 12th seed Elina Svitolina in the other semi-final.

Also on day 11 at Melbourne Park, where temperatures were far more comfortable than the 43 °C on Tuesday, Djokovic faces Lorenzo Musetti of Italy.

The winner will meet two-time reigning champion Jannik Sinner or all-action Ben Shelton of the United States in the last four.

Djokovic has won a record-equalling 24 Grand Slam titles, 10 of them in Melbourne.

But a 25th has remained agonisingly out of reach since triumphing at the US Open in 2023.

Djokovic got a free ride into the Musetti showdown when rising Czech star Jakub Mensik pulled out injured, giving the 38-year-old Serb an extra day’s rest.

“Pretty sure he won’t be tired,” said the fifth-seeded Italian Musetti. “But hopefully the rhythm that I have right now… will bring me luck for the next one. I feel ready to try to push him to his maximum.”

The odds are stacked against Musetti, who is into the last eight at Melbourne for the first time, with clay and grass his usual forte.

He has played Djokovic 10 times before — and only beaten him once, back in 2023.

Sinner is bidding to win the Melbourne crown for a third time in a row, something only Djokovic has done in the Open era (since 1968).

He has a tough opponent in Shelton, who reached the semi-finals last year, where he lost in straight sets to Sinner.

The pair have met nine times, with the world number two winning eight of them. But Shelton is a fan favourite and is hoping to harness the energy of a “rowdy” crowd to pull off a shock.

“I’m definitely a competitor, I’m rowdy on court, I look forward to rowdy crowds,” he said.

READ: Brook’s 57-ball century seals 2-1 series win for England

Harry Brook’s blistering 57-ball hundred proved the difference as England romped to a famous 53-run victory over Sri Lanka on Tuesday to clinch the series and end the hosts’ five-year-long unbeaten ODI home run.

Sri Lanka had gone 12 series unbeaten at home, winning 11 and drawing one, but Brook’s counter-punch knocked them off their perch and swung the momentum decisively England’s way.

“It was a lot better pitch than we expected. It was an awesome effort from everyone involved,” said Brook, the England captain.

“Joe Root in particular was sensational. We are pretty pleased with the way the spinners went about things and that’s a good sign ahead of the World Cup.”

Chasing a daunting 358 at Colombo’s R. Premadasa Stadium, the hosts came out all guns blazing, racing to 104 inside ten overs of the Powerplay.

But once the field spread, the boundaries dried up.

In a bid to keep up with the required run-rate, Sri Lanka’s batters took the aerial route and paid the price, as England snapped up catches with sharp work in the deep.

Young Pavan Rathnayake stood tall amid the collapse, unfurling a maiden international hundred that underlined his promise.

He was the last man out for 121 off 115 balls, striking 12 fours and a six, as Sri Lanka were bowled out for 304 in 46.4 overs.

England, who had stumbled in the opening ODI, found their rhythm as the series wore on, adapting quickly to oppressive heat and turning tracks.

After squaring the contest on Saturday, they delivered a polished all-round display when it mattered most.

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The defeat saw Sri Lanka slip one place to sixth in the ICC ODI rankings, with South Africa moving up to fifth.

Brook’s brutal 136 not out off just 66 balls was an exhibition of clean hitting that left the home attack gasping for air and the 4,000-strong English contingent of supporters in raptures as the tourists finished on 357 for three, having opted to bat first.

Brook’s 11 fours and nine sixes was power hitting with a surgeon’s precision, a blend of muscle and timing that gave England the advantage.

Brook had walked into the series under the microscope following revelations that he was fined £30,000 after a nightclub altercation in New Zealand last October.

But he looked to have put the incident behind him in posting his third ODI hundred.

The platform was laid by an unbroken 191-run stand with former skipper Joe Root for the fourth wicket, a partnership that gave England total control.

With 130 runs scored in the last 10 overs, England turned a strong total into a mountainous one.

Root’s own milestone, his 20th ODI hundred, was overshadowed by Brook’s masterclass.

The former captain remained unbeaten on 111, continuing his role as Sri Lanka’s chief tormentor after half centuries in the first two ODIs.

Earlier, a 126 run stand between Root and Jacob Bethell for the third wicket had set the stage for the late innings carnage.

Sri Lanka’s bowlers simply had no answers.

It was England’s highest score against Sri Lanka in ODIs.

It was also the fourth-highest score at the venue, where anything north of 300 is usually a match-winning one.

“Harry Brook just took the game away from us. It was a stunning knock,” said Sri Lanka skipper Charith Asalanka.

“But (there were a) lot of positives for us. Pavan Rathnayake has been scoring heavily in domestic cricket and he showcased what he can do today.”

READ: U19 World Cup: India crush Zimbabwe to claim top spot