Pakistan begin prep for Women's Asia Cup 2026 with matches against men

Fatima Sana and Pakistan have moved heaven and earth to ensure they iron out their flaws ahead of the ACC Women's Asia Cup 2026. Pakistan have not won the prestigious event even once, and the last time they finished as runners‑up was in 2016. Pakistan were up against arch‑rivals India in the final in Bangkok and lost by 17 runs as Mithali Raj scored an unbeaten 73 off 65 balls.

Pakistan are looking to achieve the unattained and have played a few matches against the men's team of the Abdul Qadir Cricket Academy in a pre‑tournament camp at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Lahore.

"We are well prepared for the tournament," Sana was quoted as saying. "We have played competitive matches against boys in which we were put under pressure. These learnings will help us adapt to the challenges of the competition."

Pakistan bottled two edge‑of‑the‑seat thrillers during the ICC Women's T20 World Cup in June. They almost defended their total of 126, only to lose by two wickets to South Africa. They had Bangladesh on the mat after restricting them to 123 but succumbed to pressure and managed only 100 in response.

Sana feels the team needs to handle pressure much better and trust the grind they put in during the lead‑up to a tournament.

"We needed to understand how to handle pressure better, and that is something which is highlighted whenever there is a big tournament," Sana said. "These matches have helped us on that front, and the difference will be visible… It is very important to stay calm in pressure situations rather than pressing the panic button. We have told the girls to stay calm in the crunch moments and stay in control by trusting their hard work and executing the plans."

Pakistan are placed in Group A alongside India, Hong Kong and Thailand. They begin their campaign against Thailand on September 1.