Salman Agha Laments Middle-Order Collapse After Pakistan’s T20 World Cup 2026 Exit

Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha lamented the team’s batting performance in the ICC T20 World Cup 2026. He said the team again faced middle order issues in this year’s tournament, something that has become a long-standing problem for Pakistan in the T20 format.

Speaking after the Sri Lanka clash, Salman Ali Agha admitted that his team couldn’t bat well throughout the tournament. He added that the green shirts faced middle order issues in different matches that eventually affected their overall batting performance

"We couldn't bat well throughout the tournament. If Farhan had more support, it would have been better. Middle order has been a problem for a few years now, we'll have to look at that," said Salman Ali Agha after Pakistan defeated Sri Lanka in Pallekele.

Salman then said that dew played a big role in the second innings when Pakistan needed to restrict Sri Lanka to 147. He added that Usman Tariq also had an off day, as he went wicketless after conceding 43 runs in his four overs.

"Was always challenging after losing the toss because of dew. Could've been a different story had we won the toss. Dew was a factor. We couldn't execute plans. Usman had an off-day; it can happen," said Salman Ali Agha at the post-match presentation ceremony.

He then admitted that while Pakistan won the match, they could not finish it the way they wanted. It certainly didn’t help them to move ahead in the ICC T20 World Cup 2026, as England and New Zealand are now qualified for the semi-finals.

"Couldn't finish the way we wanted to. We batted well 18 overs, opposition did well in the other two. Even 160 would've been difficult to defend," said Salman Ali Agha.

The Pakistan captain then summed up the whole tournament, saying that his team played below-average cricket and didn’t made the right decisions at crucial moments.

"If I have to sum up the whole tournament, I think we played below-average cricket. We haven't qualified for the semi-finals in the last four ICC tournaments because we haven't made the right decisions at crucial moments. The coach and I will take full responsibility for this performance. ” said Salman Ali Agha.