Summary Pakistan women will begin their ACC Women’s T20 Asia Cup campaign against Thailand on September 1 in Dubai, with eight teams competing in the 15-match tournament.
DUBAI (Dunya News) – Fatima Sana-led Pakistan women’s team will begin their ACC Women’s T20 Asia Cup 2026 campaign against Thailand on Tuesday, September 1, as the eight-team tournament gets underway in Dubai on Friday.
Thailand will face Hong Kong, China women in the opening match of the tournament, while all 15 fixtures will be played at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. Matches will begin at 7:30pm Pakistan time.
Pakistan are placed in Group A and will face traditional rivals India on September 5 in their second match before taking on Hong Kong, China on September 7.
Defending champions Sri Lanka are placed in Group B alongside Bangladesh, Indonesia and hosts United Arab Emirates.
The semi-finals of the eight-team tournament will be played on September 10 and 11, while the final is scheduled for September 13.
The Pakistan squad reached the United Arab Emirates on August 26 after completing a 10-day training camp at the National Cricket Academy in preparation for the tournament.
Top-order batter Sadaf Shamas has replaced wicketkeeper-batter Najiha Alvi in Pakistan’s squad after Alvi was ruled out of the tournament due to a left-knee injury.
Pakistan women played three T20Is at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium during the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024. In the Women’s Asia Cup, Pakistan’s best results came in 2012 and 2016, when they finished runners-up in consecutive editions.
Pakistan’s campaigns ended at the semi-final stage in the 2022 and 2024 editions.
The 2026 edition will be the 10th edition of the Women’s Asia Cup and the sixth to be played in the T20 format. The first four editions, held in 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2008, were played in the One-Day format.
Pakistan women’s captain Fatima Sana, speaking to the media before the team’s departure, said the players had played matches against boys during their pre-tournament camp, which helped them create and handle pressure situations.
She said the team’s aim was to adapt to the conditions as quickly as possible and approach the tournament one match at a time.
“We want to win every single game and produce positive results,” Fatima Sana said.
Pakistan Women’s Squad
Fatima Sana (captain), Ayesha Zafar, Eman Naseer, Eyman Fatima, Gull Feroza, Momina Riasat, Muneeba Ali Siddiqui (wicketkeeper), Nashra Sundhu, Sadaf Shamas, Sadia Iqbal, Saira Jabeen, Shawaal Zulfiqar, Tuba Hassan, Umm-e-Hani and Waheeda Akhtar.
