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Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha has finally settled the ongoing debate over the national team’s first-choice wicketkeeper ahead of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026.
Pakistan have experimented with several wicketkeepers since Mohammad Rizwan was dropped from T20Is after the South Africa tour in December 2024.
Mohammad Haris took over for much of 2025 before being replaced by Usman Khan, whose performances have occasionally been inconsistent, prompting scrutiny from fans and analysts.
Young batter Khawaja Nafay has also kept wickets in his brief T20I stint and is included in the World Cup squad, keeping the competition open.
Speaking after the third T20I against Australia, Salman Ali Agha underlined the team management’s confidence in Usman Khan and praised his match-winning contributions with the bat.
“Our Usman is the number one wicketkeeper. In the last match, his performance was excellent; he scored 50 runs at a position that helped the team reach 198, because I got out at that time,” Agha said.
The captain highlighted Usman’s balance as a player, combining aggressive batting with reliable glovework.
“A team needs a batter who can score runs at a good strike rate, and he is our first-choice player for that reason,” Agha added.
“His keeping has been outstanding since his comeback, and I think he has been exceptional with the bat as well. He remains our first-choice player in both roles.”
Usman Khan has so far featured in 31 T20Is for Pakistan, accumulating 414 runs at a strike rate of 120.69, including two half-centuries.
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