From hitting tape-ball sixes in the streets of Peshawar to smashing 96 off 51 balls against Sri Lanka in a Pakistan shirt, Maaz Sadaqat’s rise has been fast — and it almost didn’t happen the way it did. Here’s the story behind one of Pakistan cricket’s most exciting young talents.
Where It Started: Peshawar’s Streets
Born in May 2005, Maaz Sadaqat grew up playing street cricket in Peshawar with a plastic bat and a tape ball — the same informal training ground that’s produced generations of Pakistani cricketers. It was only after finishing his matriculation that his path into organised cricket began, and it started with family.
His elder brother, himself a first-class cricketer, introduced Maaz to the game’s more formal side and took him to Ashnaghar Cricket Club. “I was a school kid and was hitting big sixes in my first club cricket game,” Maaz later recalled. His family encouraged him to attend trials, which opened the door into the PCB’s development pathways.
Climbing the Ranks
From there, Maaz worked his way up through district and regional under-19 cricket representing Peshawar and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, before earning a place in Pakistan’s squads for the 2021 Under-19 Asia Cup and the 2022 Under-19 World Cup. He made his first-class debut for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in the 2022-23 Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, scoring 91 in one of his early matches, and gained further experience playing List A cricket for City Club in Bangladesh’s Dhaka Premier Division in 2023.
The Mentors Behind the Rise
Raffatullah Mohmand, his regional head coach and a former Pakistan player, recommended Maaz for the Bangladesh opportunity, describing him as “a quick learner and skilled cricketer.” Maaz has also credited time spent around senior Pakistan players — including Mohammad Rizwan, Iftikhar Ahmed, and Sahibzada Farhan — as formative, starting while he was still in his teens. Rizwan has recalled Maaz once visiting his Peshawar home with his brother Haroon, “carrying a dream of one day playing for Pakistan.”
The Breakthrough: PSL 2025
Maaz’s big moment came in his PSL debut for Peshawar Zalmi against Islamabad United, where he scored 55 off 33 balls in a 102-run stand alongside Babar Azam, earning Player of the Match. “I felt no pressure,” he said of batting with Babar at the other end.
A Quiet Patch, Then More Milestones
After the initial buzz from his PSL debut, attention faded somewhat amid a crowded domestic calendar and tough competition for places. But Maaz kept producing: at the ACC Rising Stars tournament in Doha in November 2025, playing for Pakistan Shaheens, he scored 258 runs across five innings and took seven wickets, earning Player of the Tournament honours.
His PSL 2026 season with Hyderabad Kingsmen was less decisive — 260 runs at an average of 23.63 across 12 matches — but he made his ODI debut against Bangladesh in March 2026 and scored 75 off 46 balls in the second match to win another Player of the Match award. The following series against Australia proved tougher, with just 35 runs across three matches.
Standout Performances Abroad and at the Asian Games
At CPL 2026, playing for Jamaica Kingsmen, Maaz produced back-to-back big scores: 112 off 49 balls in the eliminator and 114 off 58 in the final, even though Jamaica came up short in the final. He was also part of Pakistan’s 15-member squad at the Asian Games in Japan, where the team won silver — contributing a 50 off 29 balls in a run-chase of 183, and coming close to a century in the next match.
The Moment That Put Him in the Spotlight
Maaz’s biggest moment yet came in October 2026, in the T20I series against Sri Lanka. After a half-century in just his third Pakistan appearance, he followed it up with a blistering 96 off 51 balls in the second match, helping Pakistan post 215-3 and win by 82 runs to take an unassailable 2-0 series lead. He fell agonisingly short — just four runs shy — of what would have been his maiden international century.
What’s Next
With flashes of brilliance across formats but some inconsistency along the way — particularly in his PSL 2026 season and the ODI series against Australia — Maaz’s next challenge is turning these standout performances into sustained, reliable form across all three formats, the real test for any young talent trying to cement a long-term place in the national side.
Frequently Asked Questions
How did Maaz Sadaqat first get into organised cricket?
His elder brother, a first-class cricketer, introduced him to Ashnaghar Cricket Club in Peshawar after Maaz finished his matriculation, leading to trials and a place in the PCB’s development pathways.
What was his breakthrough performance?
His PSL 2025 debut for Peshawar Zalmi, where he scored 55 off 33 balls in a 102-run partnership with Babar Azam and won Player of the Match.
Has he come close to an international century?
Yes — he scored 96 off 51 balls against Sri Lanka in October 2026, falling just four runs short of a maiden international hundred.
Which senior players have mentored him?
He has credited time around Mohammad Rizwan, Iftikhar Ahmed, and Sahibzada Farhan as influential since his teenage years.
From tape-ball cricket on Peshawar’s streets to a near-century against Sri Lanka in a Pakistan shirt, Maaz Sadaqat’s story so far is a reminder of how much talent is still waiting to be discovered in the country’s local club scene.
