Pakistan will take on England in their opening match of the ICC Men’s U19 Cricket World Cup 2026 at the Takashinga Sports Club in Harare on Friday, January 16.
Pakistan, which recently won the ACC Men’s U19 Asia Cup in Dubai, beating India by 191 runs and the tri-series in Zimbabwe, beating the hosts by nine wickets, will look to carry their winning momentum and add a third trophy to their cabinet.
Pakistan, the winners of the 2004 and 2006 editions of the ICC Men’s U19 Cricket World Cup, will also be eyeing their third ICC U19 titles.
The ICC Men’s U19 World Cup will be played in Namibia and Zimbabwe from January 15 to February 6. Placed in Group ‘C’ of the 16-team tournament, Pakistan will face Scotland in their second group fixture on January 19 at the Takashinga Sports Club, before taking on hosts Zimbabwe at the same venue in their final group match on January 22.
The Super Six stage of the event will be played in Bulawayo and Harare from January 24 to February 1, with the top four sides advancing to the semi-finals on February 3 and 4, respectively. The final of the tournament will be played at the Harare Sports Club on Friday, February 6.
Ahead of the mega event, Pakistan U19 took part in training sessions and played two warm-up matches to fine-tune their preparations. The first warm-up match against Bangladesh on Saturday was washed out, with only 36.3 overs of Bangladesh’s innings possible at the Masvingo Sports Club.
Pakistan then defeated the USA by 69 runs in their second warm-up match at the Bulawayo Athletic Club on Tuesday.
Among the 15-member squad, which will be led by Farhan Yousaf, only Ali Raza featured in the 2024 edition of the ICC Men’s U19 World Cup. The right-arm fast bowler took nine wickets in the event, where Pakistan lost to Australia by one wicket in the semi-final.
Pakistan team will travel to Harare later today from Bulawayo and will hold a training session on Thursday as they prepare for their opening fixture.
ICC U19 World Cup Pakistan fixtures:
16 January – Pakistan v England, Takashinga Sports Club, Harare
19 January – Pakistan v Scotland, Takashinga Sports Club, Harare
22 January – Zimbabwe v Pakistan, Takashinga Sports Club, Harare
24 January to 1 February – Super 6 matches
3 February – First semi-final, Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo
4 February – Second semi-final, Harare Sports Club, Harare
6 February – Final, Harare Sports Club, Harare
