New Delhi, September 17 (Daily Kiran) : The Pakistan women’s cricket team has suffered a significant blow with the withdrawal of wicketkeeper-batter Muniba Ali from the Asian Games 2026. She has returned to Pakistan due to her mother’s illness and will not participate in the tournament. Muniba was not part of the playing eleven in the quarter-final match against Thailand.
According to reports from Cricinfo, her absence has left the team without a key player, as the Pakistan Cricket Board has not announced a replacement. In her stead, Gul Firoza is expected to take on the wicketkeeper role. Firoza played as the wicketkeeper in the match against Thailand and opened the batting alongside Shewar Zulfiqar.
Muniba’s departure is seen as a major setback for Pakistan. She is one of the senior players on the team and was the only batter to score a half-century in the Asia Cup. In July, she also captained the team during a bilateral T20 International series against Sri Lanka while regular captain Fatima Sana was in the UK representing Birmingham Phoenix in ‘The Women’s Hundred.’
Despite the challenges, Pakistan managed to secure a spot in the semi-finals by defeating Thailand by three wickets in the quarter-final. The match, affected by rain, saw Pakistan narrowly avoid an upset. Thailand batted first, scoring 91 runs for four wickets in an 11-over match. At one point, Pakistan found themselves struggling at 47 for four. However, a quickfire 21 runs off 13 balls from captain Fatima Sana helped the team chase down the target in 10.4 overs, losing seven wickets.
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