LAHORE: Asian Champions Pakistan Under-19 will take on England in the opening match of the ICC Men’s U-19 Cricket World Cup 2026 at the Takashinga Sports Club in Harare on today. Pakistan, who 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 for their third ICC U19 titles. The ICC Men’s U19 World Cup will be played in Namibia and Zimbabwe from 15 January to 6 February. Placed in Group ‘C’ of the 16-team tournament, Pakistan will face Scotland in their second group fixture on 19th January at the Takashinga Sports Club, before taking on hosts Zimbabwe at the same venue in their final group match on 22nd January. The Super Six stage of the event will be played in Bulawayo and Harare from 24th January to 1st February, with the top four sides advancing to the semi-finals on 3rd and 4th February, respectively. The final of the tournament will be played at the Harare Sports Club on Friday, 6th February. 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 over of Bangladesh’s innings possible at the Masvingo Sports Club. Pakistan then defeated 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 U19 captain Farhan Yousaf said, “The U19 camp in Multan helped us perform well in the Asia Cup and the tri-series. The same support staffs have been working with us for the last six months and it is now paying dividends ahead of the ICC event.“ He said, “We have prepared well for the mega event. The players share a strong bond as we have been together for the last six months. The tri-series and the warm-up match against USA helped us understand the conditions here and we are now all set to do well in the World Cup.” 15-member squad: Farhan Yousaf (captain), Usman Khan (vice-captain), Abdul Subhan, Ahmed Hussain, Ali Hasan Baloch, Ali Raza, Daniyal Ali Khan, Hamza Zahoor (wk), Huzaifa Ahsan, Momin Qamar, Mohammad Sayyam, Mohammad Shayan (wk), Niqab Shafiq, Sameer Minhas and Umar Zaib. Pakistan fixtures: 16 January – Pakistan v England, Takashinga Sports Club, Harare; 19 January – Pakistan v Scotland, Takashinga Sports Club, Harare; and 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. Copyright Business Recorder, 2026