PCB Reshapes Champions Cup for World Cup Preparations

In preparation for the 2027 Cricket World Cup in South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Namibia, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has renamed its local List A competition the Champions Cup.

Only two years have passed since the initial revamp, which transformed it into a top domestic competition with a greater prize pool and some of the world’s most well-known names.

The revamped Champions Cup will have four clubs competing in seven round-robin matches, with a final at the end. Some of the best domestic players will compete in the competition, which will be held at the Multan Cricket Stadium from August 11 to August 18.

Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shadab Khan, Saim Ayub, and Sahibzada Farhan will lead the four teams, dubbed Pakistan Gold, Pakistan Greens, Pakistan Whites, and Pakistan Blues, respectively.

However, due to Test engagements, a handful of international stars will miss the competition. Pakistan’s three-match Test series against England, which starts on August 19, will run concurrently with the Champions Cup.

Abrar Ahmed, who currently plays for Sunrisers Leeds (previously Northern Superchargers) in The Hundred 2026, will not join the red-ball team. “We have arranged this high-profile 50-over competition to provide ample playing opportunities to our best available pool of players for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2027 preparations.”

The squads were put together with the players’ roles in mind for the 50-over game. “I wish all of the teams the best of luck and look forward to watching some highly competitive contests in Multan,” PCB’s director of high performance, Aqihb Javed, said in a statement, via Cricinfo.

Pakistan has struggled after reaching the World Cup semi-finals in 2011. The 1992 winners lost five games and finished sixth in the 2023 World Cup in India. Furthermore, they finished last in Group A at home and in the UAE during the 2025 Champions Trophy.