Rizwan, Imam ul Haq set for domestic comeback as PCB unveils President’s Trophy squads and schedule

Mohammad Rizwan and Imam ul Haq are preparing to return to domestic first class cricket after the Pakistan Cricket Board announced the full schedule and squads for the 2026 to 27 President’s Trophy Grade I on Thursday.

The tournament, which serves as the traditional opening event of Pakistan’s red ball domestic season, will run from September 12 to October 28, featuring eight departmental teams competing in a single league round robin format before the top two sides advance to a five day final.

The participating teams include Ghani Glass, Khan Research Laboratories, Kingsmen Academy, Markhor Information Technology Solutions, Oil and Gas Development Company Limited, Pakistan Television, State Bank of Pakistan and Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited. Imam ul Haq has been named captain of the Oil and Gas Development Company Limited squad, while Rizwan will serve as vice captain of Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited under the leadership of captain Shan Masood.

Their return to domestic cricket follows a difficult stretch on Pakistan’s ongoing Test tour of England, where both players were among seven Pakistani cricketers sent home midway through the series after the team suffered heavy defeats in the opening two matches.

The tournament will consist of 28 four day matches across the league stage, with each team playing seven fixtures before the two top finishing sides meet in the championship final. Markhor Information Technology Solutions, winners of the previous President’s Trophy Grade II, and Kingsmen Academy, who finished as runners up in that competition, will both make their first class debuts in this year’s tournament.

Matches will be played across four venues, Imran Khan Stadium in Peshawar, Abbottabad Cricket Stadium, Diamond Cricket Ground in Islamabad and Shoaib Akhtar Cricket Stadium in Rawalpindi.

The opening round, scheduled for September 12 through 15, will see Ghani Glass face Khan Research Laboratories in Peshawar, Markhor Information Technology Solutions take on Kingsmen Academy in Abbottabad, Pakistan Television meet Oil and Gas Development Company Limited in Islamabad, and State Bank of Pakistan play Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited in Rawalpindi. The league phase will run across seven total rounds, with the final scheduled for October 24 to 28 at a venue still to be confirmed.

Each departmental squad features a mix of established international players and rising domestic talent. Ghani Glass will be led by Noman Ali, with Mohsin Riaz serving as vice captain, while Khan Research Laboratories will be captained by Iftikhar Ahmed alongside vice captain Fakhar Zaman. Kingsmen Academy, one of the tournament’s debutant sides, will be led by Tayyab Arif with Salman Ali Agha as vice captain, and the squad also includes established names such as Saud Shakeel, Hasan Nawaz and Saim Ayub.

Markhor Information Technology Solutions, the other debutant team, will be captained by Husnain Nadeem with Bismillah Khan as vice captain. Oil and Gas Development Company Limited will field Imam ul Haq as captain and Rohail Nazir as vice captain, while Pakistan Television will be led by Shamyl Hussain alongside vice captain Taimur Khan, with fast bowler Haris Rauf featuring in the squad. State Bank of Pakistan will be captained by Muhammad Ghazi Ghori, with Kamran Ghulam serving as vice captain, and Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited will be led by Shan Masood with Rizwan as his deputy, supported by a squad that includes Abdullah Shafique and Sajid Khan.

Following the opening round, the schedule continues with Ghani Glass facing Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited and Khan Research Laboratories meeting Markhor Information Technology Solutions in the second round from September 18 to 21, before further rounds carry the competition through late September and into October. The final round of league matches is set for October 18 to 21, after which the top two teams in the standings will progress directly to the championship final later that month.