UAE’s star batter Muhammad Waseem will captain the 15-member squad in the upcoming 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, set to commence on February 7 in India and Sri Lanka. The team secured their spot in the tournament by defeating Japan during the Asia & East Asia-Pacific Qualifier in Oman last year. UAE, having participated in the event twice before in 2014 and 2022, exited in the group stage on both occasions.
Ahead of the World Cup, UAE is engaged in a two-match T20I series against Ireland, with warm-up matches scheduled against Nepal and Italy on February 3 and 6 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. Their Group D campaign will kick off against New Zealand on February 10, followed by matches against Canada, Afghanistan, and South Africa at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi.
The squad for the tournament includes three players from UAE’s previous T20 World Cup appearance in Australia in 2022, namely Waseem, Alishan Sharafu, and Junaid Siddique. Waseem, who has been leading the team for the past three years, has captained UAE in 66 out of his 92 international matches.
In the coaching staff, headed by Lalchand Rajput, former Pakistan pacer Yasir Arafat has been appointed as the fast bowling coach, while Zimbabwe’s Stanley Chioza will take on the role of fielding coach. Arafat, who played 27 international games for Pakistan, has extensive coaching experience with various national teams and franchises. He will be part of the UAE squad during the Ireland series and the subsequent T20 World Cup.
