Pakistan 2026 West Indies & England Tour Squad: All Players, Schedule & WTC Stakes

Pakistan's 2026 Tour Squad: Babar Back as Captain, Four Uncapped Players, and the WTC Table Problem

Pakistan arrive at the West Indies and England tour carrying a record that demands attention.

One win from four games in the WTC 2025-27 cycle. Bottom of the table. A Bangladesh series that ended in a 2-0 Test whitewash — the first time Bangladesh had beaten Pakistan in a Test series on home soil. A coaching staff under pressure. And a country where cricket debate is never quiet for long.

The response from the selectors is a 16-man squad for the West Indies and a 17-man squad for England. Babar Azam leads both. Four uncapped players are included — left-arm spinner Ali Usman, right-handed batter Muhammad Awais Zafar, right-arm fast bowler Ubaid Shah, and wicket-keeper batter Muhammad Ghazi Ghori. The message from the selectors is clear: the rebuild is happening now, not after the next bad series.

The Schedule

West Indies (2 Tests)

England (3 Tests)

Five Tests in seven weeks. Both series part of the WTC 2025-27 cycle. Pakistan need wins urgently — and England at Headingley, Lord's and Edgbaston is not where you want to be hunting for them.

The Captain: Babar Azam

The captaincy story around Babar Azam has been one of the defining narratives of Pakistani cricket over the past three years. He has held it, lost it, and has it again — and he enters this tour carrying more scrutiny than any Pakistan batter in recent memory.

His Test average has dipped. His leadership has been questioned. But the selectors have backed him, and there is a logic to that — Pakistan's problem at the top of the order is not one man's form, it is structural, and replacing the captain does not fix a system that has struggled to produce consistent red-ball run-scorers.

Babar at his best — and this tour needs his best — is a technically near-flawless top-order batter. His record in England, while not spectacular, includes passages of play that remind you why he was once considered the best batter in the world.

The Squads in Full

16-Man Squad — West Indies Series

Babar Azam (c), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Fazal, Ali Usman, Azan Awais, Imam ul Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Muhammad Awais Zafar, Muhammad Ghazi Ghori (wk), Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Agha, Shan Masood, Ubaid Shah

17-Man Squad — England Series

Babar Azam (c), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Fazal, Ali Usman, Azan Awais, Imam ul Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Muhammad Awais Zafar, Muhammad Ghazi Ghori (wk), Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Agha, Saud Shakeel (subject to fitness), Shan Masood, Ubaid Shah

The only addition for England is Saud Shakeel — subject to fitness — whose red-ball quality makes him almost automatic when available.

Key Players to Watch

Mohammad Rizwan — Wicket-Keeper Batter

Rizwan is the most important batter in this squad. His consistency across formats, his character under pressure, and his ability to build innings when Pakistan need stability make him the player the rest of the batting order is built around. He arrives in the Caribbean after a productive domestic season.

Shan Masood — Opening Batter

Masood's resilience at the top of the order gives Pakistan an option that suits red-ball conditions in both the Caribbean and England. His ability to absorb pressure and take time building his innings suits the conditions he will face across both tours.

Imam ul Haq — Opening Batter

Imam brings experience and a solid defensive game. His record in English conditions has been reasonable and his partnership options with Masood at the top give Babar's middle order the start it needs to function.

Sajid Khan — Off-Spin

Pakistan's frontline spin option in both squads. In the Caribbean, where pitches can offer turn as they age, Sajid's control and ability to take wickets in the fourth innings make him a critical part of the bowling plan.

Ali Usman — Left-Arm Spinner (Uncapped)

The most intriguing selection. Left-arm spin is a precious commodity in Test cricket, and if Usman can complement Sajid with variety from around the wicket, Pakistan's spin attack becomes considerably harder to face on any surface offering assistance.

Khurram Shahzad — Right-Arm Fast

The pace spearhead. Shahzad's ability to generate awkward bounce and movement makes him suited to both the Caribbean's traditionally bouncy surfaces and English conditions where the Dukes ball tends to swing in overhead conditions. His fitness across five Tests in seven weeks will be monitored carefully.

Mohammad Abbas — Right-Arm Seam

Abbas's craft with the Dukes ball is one of Pakistan's most reliable weapons in England. His ability to find movement late without pace — relying on seam position and line — is exactly the kind of bowling that creates problems for English batters on English pitches. At his age, he may not play every Test, but his presence in the squad for the England series is significant.

Aamir Jamal — Right-Arm Fast-Medium

Offers pace, bounce, and the ability to take wickets in bursts. Jamal's aggressive style with the ball gives the bowling unit variety in its approach — not just holding one end but actively hunting wickets.

Salman Ali Agha — All-Rounder

The all-round option who gives Babar flexibility in how he constructs the batting order and the bowling attack. Agha's batting at number seven and his ability to contribute overs gives the side depth that pure specialists cannot.

Saud Shakeel — Left-Handed Batter (England only, subject to fitness)

When fit, Shakeel is the best red-ball batter in Pakistan behind Babar. His inclusion is essentially automatic if he clears the fitness test. His left-handed technique creates different problems for opposition bowlers and his ability to anchor an innings in difficult conditions has become one of Pakistan's most important batting assets.

The Four Uncapped Players

Ali Usman (Left-Arm Spinner) — The standout new selection. Left-arm spinners at international level are always valuable, and if Usman has the skills and temperament to operate at Test level, his inclusion is forward-thinking.

Muhammad Awais Zafar (Right-Handed Batter) — A batter who has forced his way into the picture through consistent domestic performances. His selection signals the selectors are serious about building the next generation of red-ball batters now.

Ubaid Shah (Right-Arm Fast) — Pace is always welcome, and a genuinely fast bowler who can provide a different challenge from Khurram Shahzad gives the management a decision problem they would be happy to have.

Muhammad Ghazi Ghori (Wicket-Keeper Batter) — The second wicket-keeper alongside Rizwan. His selection gives Pakistan a developmental option behind the stumps while Rizwan handles the starting duties.

The WTC Context

Pakistan sit last in the WTC 2025-27 table. West Indies are one place above them. Neither side can afford another series loss if they want to keep alive any realistic hope of making the final in 2027.

For Pakistan, the mathematical reality is stark. Five Tests across this tour, with WTC points available in every one of them. A series win in the Caribbean — against a West Indies side that has been rebuilding but remains beatable — would be the momentum shift the squad needs before facing England at three of the most iconic Test venues in the world.

England under Ben Stokes have been playing aggressive, high-intensity Test cricket. Three Tests at Headingley, Lord's and Edgbaston will test Pakistan's batting depth, bowling reserves, and — most of all — Babar's captaincy under pressure.

This is Pakistan's most important Test tour since the 2022 England tour. The squad has the talent to win in the Caribbean and compete in England.

Whether they do is the question Pakistani cricket has been unable to answer for two years.