From Raza to Rehan: 30 Pakistan-origin cricketers set to play in T20 WC

NEW DELHI: A mates of weeks ago, the Li-Ning Star cycling squad dominated the inaugural 2026 Pune Grand Tour. Interestingly, they had hardly immoderate starring Chinese riders successful their ranks.

It was reminiscent of France’s 2018 World Cup-winning team. From Kylian Mbappe to N’Golo Kante and Paul Pogba, France’s triumph was powered by players whose roots stretched crossed West and Central Africa, the Caribbean, and confederate Europe.During the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) sports presenter Paul Kennedy, a erstwhile footballer and existent journalist, shared an eye-opening statistic: successful Australia, astatine the Under-12 level, adjacent to 40 percent of kids playing cricket are of South Asian heritage.

Kennedy adjacent insisted, “Indian oregon South Asian practice cricketers mightiness really beryllium the reply for the aboriginal of cricket successful Australia.”Elite athletics has agelong moved past rigid definitions of nationality. Athletes often correspond aggregate countries implicit the people of their careers, shaped arsenic overmuch by migration and accidental arsenic by birthplace.That world volition again beryllium disposable astatine the upcoming 2026 T20 World Cup, to beryllium played successful India and Sri Lanka, wherever respective squads bespeak stories that question acold beyond their flags.

Nowhere is this much evident than among players of South Asian origin. While around 40 Indian-origin cricketers are expected to diagnostic successful the tournament, adjacent down are those of Pakistani origin.In a state affluent successful endowment and with constricted abstraction astatine the top, the way to planetary cricket often requires a alteration of address.The UAE tract the largest contingent, with 10 Pakistan-origin players successful their squad.

Among them is pacer Muhammad Jawad Ullah, a 26-year-old from Malakand, whose way to the World Cup has been thing but direct.For Jawad, cricket began arsenic a recreation alternatively than an ambition.Raised successful a household of eight, the crippled was played with a tennis ball, squeezed successful betwixt responsibilities. Coaching was absent, and operation was nonexistent.“In Pakistan, I lone played tennis-ball cricket. There was nary manager oregon experienced subordinate to usher me. Many radical told maine to articulation an academy for hard-ball cricket. I felt determination were truthful galore talented players who did not adjacent get a chance, truthful I didn’t cognize what it was astatine that time, possibly fearfulness oregon thing else,” he told TimesofIndia.com successful an exclusive enactment past year.The decisive interruption came successful 2020. With household obligations mounting, Jawad moved to the UAE and settled successful Khor Fakkan, a quiescent coastal municipality on the Gulf of Oman.The relocation brought stableness but small country for sport. He took up enactment arsenic an electrician, with agelong days opening aboriginal and ending late, the carnal toll leaving small vigor for cricket.What clip helium did find was borrowed. “I didn’t get overmuch clip to play cricket, lone astir 1 to 2 hours.

Even then, I played with a tennis shot due to the fact that playing with a hard shot requires a batch of time, astatine slightest 5 to six hours.”Jawad’s travel mirrors that of galore who near Pakistan for part-time enactment abroad, kept their passionateness live connected the margins, and person present recovered themselves connected the World Cup stage.The Netherlands’ Saqib Zulfiqar represents a second-generation chapter. His father, Zulfiqar Ahmed, calved successful Sialkot successful 1966, played and aboriginal coached Dutch cricket, shaping a pathway that saw each 3 of his sons correspond the country.

Zimbabwe skipper Sikandar Raza’s travel began with an altogether antithetic dream. His determination from Sialkot to Zimbabwe was acold from straightforward, taking him done unexpected detours that included aspirations of becoming a aviator and earning a grade successful computing from a assemblage successful Glasgow, earlier cricket yet took centre signifier aft his household relocated to Zimbabwe.“The World Cup is truly important successful each cricketer’s life.

And I ever deliberation that for Zimbabwe to summation much respect successful satellite cricket, participating successful World Cups plays a immense part. So we person the mindset to spell determination and effort to bash truly well, truthful that we tin travel backmost with our goals acceptable precocious and our radical backmost location tin clasp their heads high,” Raza said connected the sidelines of the SA20.At 39, Raza present has 1 wide goal: to animate the adjacent procreation of Sikandars astir the world. “All I’m looking astatine is trying to support doing the things I’m doing to the champion of my ability, and hopefully my performances tin animate different Sikandars successful Zimbabwe and crossed the world,” helium said.Then determination is USA accelerated bowler Ali Khan, whose show against Pakistan successful the erstwhile T20 World Cup turned him into an overnight talking point.The 2 sides volition conscionable again connected February 10.From Shayan Jahangir successful the USA to Rehan Ahmed and Adil Rashid successful England colours, from Italy and Scotland to Oman and Canada, the tourney reads similar a representation of modern migration.A crippled erstwhile segregated connected radical lines successful Africa and divided on societal lines successful England and Australia has go much inclusive and diverse.The 30 Pakistan-origin players acceptable to instrumentality portion successful the T20 World Cup 2026: