Pakistan, Afghanistan, UAE to play tri-series in preparation for Asia Cup – complete schedule | Cricket News

File photo of Pakistan and Afghanistan during a cricket match. (ICC)

Afghanistan, Pakistan, and UAE are set to participate in a T20 tri-series in Sharjah this August-September. The Emirates Cricket Board will host the tournament, giving these teams valuable preparation time before the T20 Asia Cup starting September 9 in the UAE.The tri-series will follow a round-robin format where each team plays against the others twice. The top two teams will then face off in the final. All matches are scheduled for 7pm local time in Sharjah.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!Among the participating teams, Pakistan hold the highest ICC ranking at No. 8, followed by Afghanistan at No. 9, and UAE at No. 14. This tournament replaces the previously planned three T20Is between Pakistan and Afghanistan according to ICC’s Future Tours programme.Pakistan are currently playing against West Indies in a white-ball series, where they’ve won their first game. They’ll begin their Asia Cup campaign against Oman on September 12. Afghanistan, who haven’t played a T20I since their Zimbabwe series last year, will face Hong Kong in their Asia Cup opener on September 9.Looking ahead to the 2026 T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka, both Pakistan and Afghanistan have already secured their spots. Afghanistan qualified by finishing among the top seven teams in the previous World Cup, while Pakistan made it through their ICC ranking as of June 30, 2024. UAE still need to earn their World Cup spot through the Asia-East Asia and Pacific qualifiers in Oman this October.Complete schedule of tri-series

(All matches will take place in Sharjah.)