Dubai:
UAE’s premier batter Muhammad Waseem has been named captain of the 15-member squad for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, set to begin on February 7 across India and Sri Lanka.
The tournament will feature 20 teams, and UAE earned their qualification by defeating Japan in the Super Six stage of the Asia & East Asia-Pacific Qualifier held in Oman last year.
🇦🇪 Third World Cup Appearance for UAE
The upcoming edition will mark UAE’s third appearance at the T20 World Cup, having previously featured in 2014 and 2022, where they exited at the group stage on both occasions.
Ahead of the global event, UAE will fine-tune their preparations with a two-match T20I series against Ireland, followed by warm-up fixtures against Nepal on February 3 and Italy on February 6.
📍 Tough Group Awaits UAE
UAE have been placed in Group D, alongside:
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New Zealand (former champions)
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South Africa (2025 finalists)
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Afghanistan
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Canada
Their campaign will begin against New Zealand on February 10 in Chennai. The team will then shift base to Delhi for their remaining group matches:
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🆚 Canada – February 13
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🆚 Afghanistan – February 16
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🆚 South Africa – February 18
The Super Eights stage of the tournament is scheduled to start on February 21.
⭐ Core Players Retained
The squad features three players from UAE’s 2022 T20 World Cup campaign in Australia:
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Muhammad Waseem
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Alishan Sharafu
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Junaid Siddique
Waseem, who has been leading the side for the past three years, has captained UAE in 66 of his 92 international matches, underlining his importance to the team’s structure and leadership.
🧠 Experienced Support Staff
The UAE support staff will be headed by former India international Lalchand Rajput, with:
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Yasir Arafat (former Pakistan pacer) as fast bowling coach
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Stanley Chioza of Zimbabwe as fielding coach
Arafat, who played 27 international matches for Pakistan, brings vast coaching experience across national teams and franchise cricket. He will remain with the squad throughout the Ireland series and the World Cup.
📋 UAE Squad for ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026
Muhammad Waseem (Captain)
Alishan Sharafu, Aryansh Sharma (wk), Dhruv Parashar, Haider Ali, Harshit Kaushik, Junaid Siddique, Mayank Kumar, Muhammad Arfan, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Zohaib, Rohid Khan, Sohaib Khan, Simranjeet Singh
