Pakistan are world champions again — this time in veterans cricket. Pakistan beat Australia by one wicket in a nerve-shredding final to lift the International Masters Cricket (IMC) Over-40s World Cup 2026 at the Guyana National Stadium in Georgetown, sealing victory with just one ball to spare on Saturday 31 October 2026.
Chasing Australia’s 281 for six, Pakistan reached 282 for nine in 44.5 overs. Captain Junaid Nainitalwala, the last man in, drove the winning run through the covers off the penultimate ball of the match to spark wild celebrations among the Pakistan camp. It was a final that swung one way and then the other all afternoon — and Pakistan won it from a position that had looked hopeless.
Australia’s century sets up a stiff chase
Australia chose to bat first and built their total around a fine century from Greg Hunt. Hunt struck 103 off 102 balls, hitting six sixes and four fours, and shared a 128-run stand for the third wicket with captain Steve Paulsen, who made 70 off 76 balls. At 194 for two in the 36th over, Australia looked set for a much bigger score.
Pakistan fought back with the ball. Syed Fariduddin was the pick of the bowlers with four wickets for 40 runs, while Waseem Ali took two for 64. Hunt added a further 62-run partnership with Steven Spoljaric for the fifth wicket, but Pakistan kept chipping away to hold Australia to 281 for six from their 45 overs — a strong total, but one Pakistan could chase on a good batting surface.
Pakistan collapse — then the great recovery
Pakistan’s chase began in disastrous fashion. Australian pacer Jamie Panelli removed openers Fahad Jabbar for one, Tofeeq Umer for 11 and Imran Khan for three, leaving Pakistan reeling at 27 for three in the ninth over. When Sheharyar Ghani was bowled by Brenton Edwards in the next over, Pakistan had slumped to 36 for four and the final looked gone.
A 67-run partnership between Adnan Akmal and Tariq Mahmood carried Pakistan past 100, but when captain Paulsen had Mahmood caught behind for 41, Pakistan were 103 for five in the 21st over and Australia were firmly on top again.
That was when the match turned. Akmal and Jawad Mansoor put together a superb 115-run partnership that dragged Pakistan right back into the contest. Akmal struck 83 off 84 balls with 10 fours and one six, while Mansoor made 62 off 57 balls with seven fours and one six. Their stand turned a lost cause into a genuine chase — and even after both fell in quick succession, leaving Pakistan 236 for seven in the 42nd over, the momentum had shifted for good.
One ball to spare: the finish
Fariduddin, already Pakistan’s best bowler of the day, then produced the decisive late cameo with the bat, smashing two sixes in an unbeaten 24 off just 16 balls. Waseem Ali’s quickfire 22 off 17 balls helped the pair add 42 runs in only 21 balls, and suddenly Pakistan were within touching distance.
The tension returned in the final over. Ali was needlessly run out, and Muhammad Khalil was run out too, leaving Pakistan nine down on 280 with three balls remaining. Fariduddin scrambled a single, and last man Junaid Nainitalwala drove Panelli through the covers for the winning run off the penultimate ball. Pakistan had won by one wicket, with a ball to spare — the tightest possible margin in a World Cup final.
Fariduddin’s all-round performance — four wickets and the unbeaten late runs — earned him the Player of the Final award, capping a remarkable day for the veteran all-rounder.
A tournament win worth celebrating
The tournament, played in Guyana from 17 to 31 October 2026, featured 15 nations playing 64 matches across 10 grounds. Pakistan’s triumph was celebrated back home this week, with PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi congratulating the Over-40s squad on Wednesday 4 November 2026, praising the players for showing their skills against 15 teams and calling it a proud moment for the nation.
The win also adds another chapter to Pakistan’s proud record in veterans cricket, with reports describing it as a historic treble across the age-group world titles. For the players involved — many of them long past their professional peaks — it is proof that the competitive fire never really fades. They arrived in Guyana as one of 15 teams, survived a final that seemed lost twice, and came home as world champions.
What to watch next
Pakistan’s veterans will now turn their attention to defending the title at the next edition, while the Pakistan Veterans Cricket Association will hope this win brings fresh attention — and fresh players — to masters cricket at home. For fans, the final itself is already the stuff of legend: a century against them, a collapse to 36 for four, a 115-run rescue act, and a winning run off the penultimate ball. Finals do not come much tighter than this one.
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