Quaid-e-Azam Trophy 2026-27 Starts November 3: Babar vs Shaheen in Opening Round, Full Schedule and Squads

Day 4 — Final Result: FATA Beat Lahore Whites by 241 Runs

FATA have beaten Lahore Whites by 241 runs in the opening round of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Gold 2026/27 at the Diamond Cricket Ground in Islamabad, wrapping up the match on the fourth day, Friday, November 6, 2026.

Lahore Whites, chasing a daunting 412 for victory, were bowled out for just 170 in their second innings. Babar Azam, who had made 28 in the first innings, scored 42 off 77 balls before edging to first slip — and vented his frustration by slamming his bat into the pitch, a moment that quickly went viral on social media. With the opening Test against Sri Lanka starting on Monday, November 9, in Rawalpindi, Babar has now run out of time to find form in domestic cricket.

FATA had set the tone on day one, when debutant Fawad Arshad’s 115 carried them to 362, and Mohammad Farooq’s second-innings 123 then put the match beyond Lahore Whites. The result is a big early statement from FATA in the 69th edition of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, which began on November 3 with 20 regional teams across two tiers.

Scores verified from Mathrubhumi and Cricket News; day-one to day-three figures as reported in our earlier updates below.

Day 3 Stumps: FATA Close In on Victory Over Lahore Whites

FATA are closing in on victory over Lahore Whites in the opening round of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Gold. FATA posted 362 and 283 at the Diamond Cricket Ground in Islamabad, setting Lahore Whites 412 to win — and the Whites closed day three on 40 for 4, with Pakistan Test captain Babar Azam unbeaten on 20.

Mohammad Farooq struck 123 in FATA’s second innings, with Salman Khan Jnr adding 53, while Mohammad Salman Mirza took three wickets for Lahore Whites. Afaq Afridi took two wickets in the final session to leave Lahore Whites four down. Mohammad Huraira also struck a century as Peshawar Blues strengthened their position on day three.

Updated: November 5, 2026 (day-three stumps).

Pakistan’s premier first-class tournament is back tomorrow. The 69th edition of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy begins on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, with 20 regional teams, 60 first-class matches and a headline opening-round clash: Babar Azam’s Lahore Whites against Shaheen Shah Afridi’s FATA at the Diamond Cricket Ground in Islamabad. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced the schedule and team rosters on Monday, November 2 — and the star power does not stop at Babar and Shaheen, with Mohammad Rizwan captaining Peshawar Blues and Imam-ul-Haq leading Multan. Here is the full format, the teams, the captains and the dates that matter.

Key facts

Babar vs Shaheen: the opening-round headline

The match everyone will be watching first is Lahore Whites against FATA in Islamabad. Babar Azam, Pakistan’s Test captain, turns out for Lahore Whites, while Shaheen Shah Afridi, Pakistan’s one-day captain, leads FATA — a genuine star-versus-star contest to open a first-class season, not a warm-up fixture tucked away from attention.

Lahore Whites’ squad around Babar includes all-rounder Aamir Jamal, Tayyab Tahir and spinner Noman Ali. FATA, led by Shaheen, also feature Khushdil Shah and Mohammad Wasim Khan. For fans who have followed Pakistan’s white-ball season, seeing Babar face Shaheen with the red ball — in domestic whites, on a first-class ground, with a full four days to play out — is the kind of contest domestic cricket rarely serves up this early.

Two divisions, one trophy race

The tournament runs in two tiers at the same time. The Gold tier is the championship division: eight teams — Karachi Blues, Faisalabad, FATA, Lahore Whites, Islamabad, Peshawar Blues, Multan and Sialkot Blues — playing 29 matches from November 3 to December 12, with the two top sides meeting in a five-day final from December 15 to 19.

The Silver tier is the pathway division: 12 teams split into two groups of six, playing 31 matches from November 3 to 30. The two group winners meet in a final from December 3 to 7, and the winners earn promotion to the Gold tier for the following season. Both tiers carry first-class status, so every run and wicket counts on a player’s first-class record.

The Silver groups are: Group A — Lahore Blues, Rawalpindi, Larkana, Quetta, Bahawalpur and Peshawar Whites; Group B — Karachi Whites, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Hyderabad, Dera Murad Jamali, Abbottabad and Sialkot Whites. Group A matches will be played at the KCCA Stadium and the SBP and UBL Sports Complexes in Karachi, while Group B fixtures go to Multan Cricket Stadium, the Sports Complex in Rahim Yar Khan and Dring Stadium in Bahawalpur.

One notable first: this is the first time Peshawar and Sialkot regions will field two teams each in a first-class competition — Peshawar Blues and Peshawar Whites, Sialkot Blues and Sialkot Whites.

Captains and star names to watch

Saud Shakeel captains defending champions Karachi Blues, who have retained a strong line-up including Saim Ayub and Omair Bin Yousuf. Shan Masood, Abrar Ahmed and Mir Hamza sit in the team’s reserves and national-duty pool — a reminder that squads here are built to flex around national commitments.

Mohammad Rizwan captains Peshawar Blues, with Sahibzada Farhan, Mohammad Haris and Iftikhar Ahmed also named in the squad, along with Sajid Khan and Abbas Afridi. Imam-ul-Haq takes charge of Multan, whose squad includes Aamer Yamin, Sharoon Siraj and Faisal Akram. Abdullah Shafique captains Sialkot Blues.

The Silver tier has its own star names. Abbottabad have included Fakhar Zaman and Kamran Ghulam, while Rawalpindi’s squad features Shadab Khan, Haider Ali, Mohammad Nawaz — named Rawalpindi’s skipper — and Jahandad Khan. If you follow Pakistan’s white-ball regulars, the Silver groups are worth checking, not just the Gold table.

Teams will operate with revolving rosters through the tournament: 15 travelling members, with the option to draw on reserve players and those in the national-duty pool when available. That matters for fans planning to follow a favourite player — squads announced now are not necessarily the playing XIs on every match day, and players returning from national duty remain available for selection.

How Rizwan and Imam got here

Rizwan and Imam come into the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy straight from the President’s Trophy Grade-I 2026-27, where Rizwan captained Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) and Imam led Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL). That departmental tournament began on September 12.

According to reports, both players initially missed the first six rounds after the PCB denied them permission to participate, before the board cleared them to return to domestic cricket ahead of the seventh and final round of the President’s Trophy. Their availability for their regional sides — Rizwan for Peshawar, Imam for Multan — was confirmed by sources to Geo News on Sunday, November 2, ahead of the PCB’s formal squad announcement on Monday.

Why this edition matters

Domestic first-class cricket is where Pakistan’s next Test players are usually found, and a 60-match season with the national team’s biggest names involved gives selectors a long, proper look at form — not a single innings, but weeks of it. The Gold final in mid-December also gives the season a clear climax, while the Silver promotion race gives the second tier genuine stakes instead of friendly fixtures.

For supporters, the practical point is simple: from November 3, there is first-class cricket across Islamabad, Abbottabad and Rawalpindi in the opening round, plus Karachi, Multan, Rahim Yar Khan and Bahawalpur in the Silver groups. We will update this page as the opening round unfolds — scores, standout performances and any squad changes from the national-duty pool.

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FAQs

Update — Day 1 Results (November 3, 2026)

The first day of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy 2026-27 produced three centuries and one dominant team performance. Here are the Gold Tier scores at stumps on day 1, Tuesday, November 3:

Rizwan’s century was his 16th in first-class cricket, drawing him level with former Pakistan captain Sarfaraz Ahmed’s tally, while Najab’s unbeaten 101 was his maiden first-class hundred in only his third match. Huraira’s 117 was his 13th first-class century and came after Sialkot had slumped to 14-4. All four matches resume on day 2, Wednesday, November 4.

Day 2 stumps — 4 November 2026

Peshawar captain Mohammad Rizwan struck an unbeaten 200 off 252 balls (35 fours, one six) as Peshawar declared at 503-4 against Faisalabad at Abbottabad; Faisalabad reached 118-2 at stumps, trailing by 385.

Defending champions Karachi Blues hold a 39-run first-innings lead over Sialkot (280 vs 241, Ghazi Ghori 88); Sialkot reached 13 without loss in their second innings, trailing by 26.

FATA lead Lahore Whites by 150 (FATA 362 all out, Fawad Arshad 115; Lahore Whites 234 all out; FATA 22-1 in their second innings).

Multan ended day two at 249-7 with Rafiq unbeaten on 93.