Pakistan opt to bat in first T20I against Australia

Pakistan have won the toss and opted to bat first in the first T20I against Australia here at the Gaddafi Stadium on Thursday.

This series serves as key preparation for both sides ahead of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, set to be co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka from February 7 to March 8.

Pakistan have been placed in Group A alongside India, USA, the Netherlands and Namibia, while Australia will feature in Group B with Sri Lanka, Ireland, Zimbabwe and Oman.

Pakistan and Australia have played a total of 28 T20I matches. Australia have a slight edge with 14 victories while Pakistan have come out victorious in 13 games. One match ended without a result.

Cricket Australia (CA) on Thursday announced their Playing XI for the opening T20I against Pakistan, set to be played later today at the Gaddafi Stadium, with three uncapped players included in the lineup.

Australia will be led by opener Travis Head, who is set to captain the side in the series opener as regular skipper Mitchell Marsh has been rested to manage his workload.

Marsh has been on the go for several months and recently played the entire Big Bash League (BBL) season for champions Perth Scorchers, before arriving late in Pakistan after playing the season finale.

Meanwhile, Mahli Beardman and Jack Edwards are set to make their international debuts, while Matthew Renshaw will play his first-ever T20I for Australia.

The 29-year-old left-handed batter has already represented Australia in 14 Tests and three ODIs since making his international debut in 2016, but Thursday’s fixture will mark his first appearance in the shortest format at the international level.

The remaining two matches of the three-game series will also be played at the same venue on January 31 and February 1, respectively.

The matches are scheduled to begin at 4:00pm PKT, with the toss taking place at 3:30pm PKT.

Notably, the series serves as key preparation for both sides ahead of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, set to be co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka from February 7 to March 8.

Pakistan have been placed in Group A alongside India, USA, the Netherlands and Namibia, while Australia will feature in Group B with Sri Lanka, Ireland, Zimbabwe and Oman.

Playing XIs

Australia: Travis Head (c), Matt Short, Cameron Green, Matthew Renshaw, Cooper Connolly, Mitchell Owen, Josh Philippe, Jack Edwards, Xavier Bartlett, Mahli Beardman, Adam Zampa.

Pakistan: Salman Ali Agha (c), Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Usman Khan (wk), Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Salman Mirza, Abrar Ahmed.