Left-arm wrist-spinner Paktia
Noor Ahmad Lakanwal is in the Paktia squad for APL T20 2026 — a Diamond pick, and the youngest bowler ever to play in the Big Bash.
Last updated 6 November 2026, 07:28 GST
He was 13 when the first APL season was played in 2018, and he was not part of that league. His Twenty20 debut came a year later, for Mis Ainak Knights in the Shpageeza Cricket League in October 2019.
Noor Ahmad's name never appeared on an APL teamsheet in 2018. He was 13 years old when the first season was played in Sharjah, and his Twenty20 debut was still a year away. By the time the league returned, he had become one of the most travelled young spinners in franchise cricket — a BBL record-holder at 15, a World Cup debutant at 18, a Caribbean Premier League title-winner at 19, and Chennai Super Kings' leading wicket-taker in the 2025 IPL.
Paktia took him in the first Diamond round at the Dubai draft on 3 November 2026, at the Diamond price of US$65,000, to lead a spin attack alongside Wanindu Hasaranga and Nahid Rana. He plays under captain Rahmanullah Gurbaz, with Azhar Mahmood as head coach and Waqar Younis as mentor, and the season starts on 27 December 2026 in the UAE. Eight years after the league's first season, his APL debut is finally due.
Noor Ahmad has no APL figures yet. He was not part of the league in 2018, so there is no 2018 row, and the 2026 season has not started.
| Season | Matches | Innings | Runs | Highest | Average | Strike rate | 50s / 100s | 4s | 6s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Season not started | ||||||||
| Season | Matches | Overs | Wickets | Best figures | Average | Economy | Strike rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Season not started | ||||||
| Year | Team | Matches | Runs | Wickets | Finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Paktia | To be confirmed | To be confirmed | To be confirmed | To be confirmed |
5 for 13 in 3.3 overs at Sharjah — his maiden five-wicket haul in T20 internationals and his career-best figures in the format — as Zimbabwe were bowled out for 79 and Afghanistan won by seven wickets to sweep the series 3-0.
Why it mattered: the first five-wicket haul by an Afghan left-arm spinner in men's T20Is, and the spell that sealed a home series whitewash.
3 for 19 in four overs at Providence, dismissing Moeen Ali, Shimron Hetmyer and Raymon Reifer, as Guyana were held to 138 for 8 and St Lucia Kings won by six wickets to lift their maiden CPL title.
Why it mattered: the decisive spell of a final, from the tournament's leading wicket-taker — he was named Player of the Series for 22 wickets in 12 matches.
4 for 10 in four overs at Harare Sports Club, on his international debut at 17, as Afghanistan defended 125 and beat Zimbabwe by 35 runs to complete a 3-0 series sweep. He was named Player of the Match.
Why it mattered: a debut that announced him — four wickets, a Player of the Match award, and the best T20I debut figures by an Afghan bowler.
3 for 49 in ten overs at Chennai, dismissing Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, as Afghanistan chased 283 and won by eight wickets. He was 18, the youngest debutant in the tournament.
Why it mattered: the best figures by an Afghan bowler on World Cup debut, in a win over Pakistan that shook the tournament.
5 for 11 in 3.2 overs at Kingsmead, Durban — his maiden five-wicket haul in T20 cricket, on a hat-trick twice — as Durban's Super Giants bowled Paarl out for 83 and won by 125 runs.
Why it mattered: his first T20 five-for, and the spell that turned a league game into a rout.
Noor Ahmad is a left-arm wrist-spinner — a chinaman bowler — and that alone makes him rare. His stock ball is the googly, backed by a leg-break and a flipper, and he bowls quick through the air, which makes him hard to sweep. Batters struggle to pick his variations out of the hand: on his T20I debut in Harare, Zimbabwe's batters simply could not read him, and he finished with four for 10. The same unreadability ran through his 5 for 13 against the same opponents four years later, and through his 3 for 19 in the 2024 CPL final.
He is an attacking middle-overs bowler, not a containing one. Captains use him in short bursts to take wickets, and his strike rate — a wicket every 18 balls across his T20 career — is the sharp end of the trade, even if his economy sits above the miserly spinners. He is a genuine tail-ender with the bat, so everything he is picked for comes with the ball, though he showed a flash of hitting at the 2025 Asia Cup, striking two sixes in the final over against Bangladesh. In 2026 Paktia will ask him to do the job he has done everywhere else: bowl in the middle overs, break partnerships, and take the wickets that change a game.
Noor Ahmad was born in Khost on 3 January 2005, the youngest of eight children, and started cricket at a local academy at 12. His first-class debut came at 14, for Kabul Region in April 2019, and his Twenty20 debut followed that October for Mis Ainak Knights in the Shpageeza League, where he was named Emerging Player of the Year in his first edition. He played two Under-19 World Cups for Afghanistan — seven wickets in five matches in South Africa in 2020, then ten wickets in six matches in the West Indies in 2022, where Afghanistan reached the semi-finals and he was Player of the Match in the quarter-final against Sri Lanka Under-19s.
His international debut was one of the great teenage entrances. On 14 June 2022, aged 17, he took four for 10 on his T20I debut against Zimbabwe in Harare and was named Player of the Match as Afghanistan completed a 3-0 series sweep. His ODI debut followed on 30 November 2022 against Sri Lanka at Pallekele, and he has never played Test cricket. At the 2023 ODI World Cup in India he took three for 49 on debut against Pakistan in Chennai, dismissing Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan in an eight-wicket win, and finished the tournament with five wickets in four matches. The 2024 T20 World Cup was leaner — one wicket in seven matches as Afghanistan reached the semi-finals — but he was back among the wickets at the 2025 Asia Cup, where his two for 23 against Bangladesh in Abu Dhabi made him the year's leading wicket-taker in T20 cricket. As of 1 November 2026 he had played 13 one-day internationals, taking ten wickets, and 30 T20 internationals, taking 25 wickets, with 261 wickets in 230 T20 matches overall.
In the Indian Premier League he has played for two sides. Gujarat Titans bought him for ₹30 lakh at the 2022 mega auction and kept him on the bench for the whole of their title-winning season; he made his debut in April 2023 against Rajasthan Royals as an impact substitute and dismissed Sanju Samson, then took 16 wickets in 13 matches that season, including three for 37 against Mumbai Indians and two for 18 in the final against Chennai Super Kings, which Gujarat lost. After ten matches and eight wickets in 2024, Chennai Super Kings bought him for ₹10 crore at the 2024 mega auction, and he repaid them at once: four for 18 on his Chennai debut against Mumbai Indians in March 2025, then 24 wickets in 14 matches, the most by any Chennai bowler and the second-most in the tournament. He added 13 wickets in 14 matches in 2026. Across his IPL career: 51 matches, 61 wickets, best figures of four for 18.
Away from the IPL he has been everywhere a wrist-spinner is wanted. Melbourne Renegades signed him at 15, and on 19 December 2020 he became the youngest player ever in Big Bash League history, taking the wicket of Hobart Hurricanes captain Peter Handscomb on debut. In the Pakistan Super League he took two for 19 and Player of the Match for Karachi Kings against Lahore Qalandars in June 2021, aged 16, and later played for Quetta Gladiators. In South Africa he has played three seasons for Durban's Super Giants — 12 wickets in six matches in 2024, including his maiden T20 five-for, five for 11 against Paarl Royals; 13 wickets in ten matches in 2025, the side's leading tally; and five wickets in eight matches in 2025–26. In the Caribbean he was the best bowler of CPL 2024, taking 22 wickets in 12 matches for St Lucia Kings and starring in the final, after first signing for the franchise in 2020 and missing that season over a visa. In the ILT20 he played the inaugural season for Sharjah Warriorz and returned in 2025–26 for Desert Vipers, taking 11 wickets in eight matches before the side beat MI Emirates in the final. In Major League Cricket he led Texas Super Kings' attack in 2025 with 15 wickets, including four for 25 against Los Angeles Knight Riders. In The Hundred he played once for Welsh Fire in 2022 and eight wickets for Manchester Super Giants in 2026, including three for 33 in the final against Trent Rockets.
Paktia. The side took him in the first Diamond round at the player draft in Dubai on 3 November 2026, at the Diamond price of US$65,000. He plays under captain Rahmanullah Gurbaz, with Azhar Mahmood as head coach and Waqar Younis as mentor, in a 19-player squad. The season starts on 27 December 2026 in the UAE.
No. He was 13 when the first APL season was played in Sharjah in October 2018, and he was not part of that league. His Twenty20 debut came a year later, for Mis Ainak Knights in the Shpageeza Cricket League in October 2019. His first APL match will come in 2026, eight years after the league's first season.
Five for 13 against Zimbabwe at Sharjah on 1 November 2026 — his maiden five-wicket haul in T20 internationals, and his career-best figures in the format. His T20I debut was almost as good: four for 10 against the same opponents in Harare in June 2022. His best ODI figures are three for 49 against Pakistan at the 2023 World Cup.
Gujarat Titans from 2023 to 2024, then Chennai Super Kings from 2025. He played 13 matches for Gujarat in 2023, taking 16 wickets, and was Chennai's leading wicket-taker in 2025 with 24 wickets in 14 matches. Across his IPL career he has 51 matches, 61 wickets and best figures of four for 18, taken on his Chennai debut against Mumbai Indians.
He is a left-arm wrist-spinner — a chinaman bowler — whose stock ball is the googly, backed by a leg-break and a flipper. He bowls quick through the air, which makes him hard to sweep, and batters struggle to pick his variations out of the hand. He is an attacking middle-overs bowler, used in short bursts to take wickets rather than to contain.
