Wahab Riaz Backs Asia Cup Overhaul, Snaps At Sana Mir: 'I Have Nothing To Do With Her Opinion'

News cricket Wahab Riaz Backs Asia Cup Overhaul, Snaps At Sana Mir: 'I Have Nothing To Do With Her Opinion' Wahab Riaz Backs Asia Cup Overhaul, Snaps At Sana Mir: 'I Have Nothing To Do With Her Opinion' Published By : , Published By : News18.com Last Updated: Sep 06, 2026, 07:27 First Published: Sep 06, 2026, 07:21 Location: New Delhi, India, India Last Updated Sep 06, 2026, 07:27 Pakistan women's head coach Wahab Riaz stood by the decision to axe seven cricketers for the Asia Cup. 3 Quick Answers Advertisement Former Pakistan pacer and women's team head coach Wahab Riaz has said that the selection committee made changes to the T20I squad with the future in mind and although former cricketer Sana Mir has her concerns and her own opinion, he has 'nothing to do' with it. Wahab Riaz is currently the head coach of Pakistan women's cricket team (Picture credit: AP) Sana had criticised the management for making wholesale changes to the team for the Women's Asia Cup, leaving out seven players. The likes of Iram Javed, Aliya Riaz and Natalia Pervaiz were dropped from the team. Riaz said that the players who were left out had been out of form for a long time and were dropped as a result. 'Sana Mir has her own opinion. I have nothing to do with that opinion. We have made changes with the future in mind. The players who were playing before have played a lot of World Cups and Asia Cups, but we were not getting the results," Riaz said while speaking at the post-match press conference. Pakistan were thrashed by arch-rivals India by seven wickets on Saturday, September 5, in a group-stage game of the Asia Cup. 'So it was time to go with new faces and bring new girls into the mix to build the team for the upcoming tournaments. It isn't about who we left behind. We have to look at the reality," Riaz said. 'The girls who were left out were not performing at all. I think we did the right move by bringing new girls into the mix," Riaz added. Pakistan captain Fatima Sana showed some fight against India, claiming the wickets of Shafali Verma, Pratika Rawal and Smriti Mandhana. But India cruised to a seven-wicket win with 68 balls to spare. Pakistan's hopes of reaching the semifinals now hang in the balance, with a victory over Hong Kong in their final group-stage match imperative. 'I believe that all the players in our team are very skilful and they just need to trust themselves. Our next match is against Hong Kong. We will go back and discuss what we did wrong against India," Riaz said. News18 Newsletter Handpicked stories, in your inbox A newsletter with the best of our journalism submit Quick Answers Powered by Ask News18 Why did Wahab Riaz make changes to the Pakistan women's T20I squad for the Asia Cup? Wahab Riaz stated that changes were made to the T20I squad with the future in mind, as previous players had been out of form for a long time and the team was not getting desired results in past World Cups and Asia Cups. He aimed to bring in new faces to build the team for upcoming tournaments. What was Sana Mir's opinion regarding the Pakistan women's team selection for the Asia Cup? Sana Mir criticized the management for making wholesale changes to the team for the Women's Asia Cup, specifically for dropping seven players, including Iram Javed, Aliya Riaz, and Natalia Pervaiz. What was the result of the Pakistan vs. India match in the Asia Cup group stage on September 5? Pakistan was defeated by arch-rivals India by seven wickets in a group-stage game of the Asia Cup on Saturday, September 5. India secured the win with 68 balls to spare. Powered by Ask News18 First Published: September 06, 2026, 07:21 IST Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy Loading comments...