On Saturday, September 12, 2026, Shaheen Afridi will play for Khan Research Laboratories in the President’s Trophy Grade-I, marking his return to competitive first-class cricket. On Thursday, September 10, the 26-year-old left-arm pacer’s participation was announced. On the first day of the event, KRL will play Ghani Glass at Imran Khan Stadium in Peshawar.
In order for Shaheen to regain his spot in the national Test team, the Pakistan Cricket Board mandated that he return to domestic first-class cricket. Both the current England Test series and Pakistan’s recent tour of the West Indies did not include him in their lineups. Prior to this event, his most recent confirmed domestic first-class appearance occurred on October 28, 2019, when he represented Northern against Southern Punjab in the 2019–20 Quaid-e-Azam Trophy at Sialkot. This represents an almost seven-year hiatus at the domestic red-ball level.
The KRL team will be captained by Iftikhar Ahmed and vice-captained by Fakhar Zaman. Alongside them, Shaheen is listed on the tournament squad.
How has Shaheen Afridi performed before this comeback?
Shaheen Afridi has continued to be active and productive in other forms despite his protracted hiatus from local first-class cricket. With 13 wickets throughout the competition, including a hat-trick in the championship match, he guided Pakistan Gold to victory in the National Champions Cup last month. His fitness and rhythm were unquestionable going into this red-ball assignment, as seen by that white-ball performance.
Since making his debut for Pakistan in 2018, Shaheen has claimed 126 wickets in 34 Test matches. Given his recent white-ball productivity and consistent international record, the PCB’s choice to send him through local cricket before any Test recall thus represents a procedural administrative obligation more than a fitness worry.
What is established for Shaheen Afridi by the President’s Trophy format?
The period for the President’s Trophy Grade-I is September 12–October 28, 2026. Eight teams compete in a single-league round-robin stage that consists of a total of 28 four-day games, with seven games per team. After the league stage, the top two teams move on to a five-day final.
In order to provide the bowler a significant and organised block of red-ball cricket over the tournament window, Shaheen Afridi and KRL will have up to seven four-day matches to create a mark prior to the final. The next confirmed procedural step between Shaheen Afridi and a possible comeback to Pakistan’s Test team is to finish this domestic spell. The competition ends on October 28, 2026, which is also the date of his most recent domestic first-class appearance, which was confirmed in 2019.
