PCB announces four-team ODI tournament ahead of 2027 World Cup

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has confirmed that it will stage a four-team One-Day tournament in August as part of its preparations for the 2027 ICC Men's Cricket World Cup, scheduled to be held in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia from October 4 to November 21, 2027.

PCB Director of High Performance Aaqib Javed said the tournament would be held before the start of the domestic first-class season and would help identify a core group of players for the World Cup, which is around 18 months away.

"We have around 18 months until the 2027 World Cup, so this is the right time to begin our preparations," Javed said.
He said the national selectors and coaching staff had jointly planned the competition and would form four balanced teams comprising Pakistan's leading white-ball players.

"The selectors and coaches sat together and designed this four-team tournament," he said.
Javed added that the selectors and coaches would also decide each team's playing XI based on players' roles to assess combinations more effectively. "This tournament will help us determine which group of players should form the core of our plans going forward," he said.

He also confirmed that every match would be televised, allowing performances to be closely monitored.

"Pakistan's ODI team should be ranked among the top four in the world. Anything below that is unacceptable," Javed said.