DURBAN – Pakistan is all set to face South Africa in an all-format series for the first time since 2019, which will begin with the first of three T20Is on Tuesday at the Kingsmead Stadium in Durban.
Pakistan’s T20I squad reached Durban on Friday and has taken part in two training sessions.
The second and third T20Is are scheduled to take place on 13 and 14 December at the Super Sport Park, Centurion and The Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg, respectively.
The three ODIs will take place on 17, 19 and 22 December followed by the Centurion Test on 26 December and Cape Town Test on 3 January.
Pakistan’s T20I squad, which was announced on 4 December, has seen the return of regular white-ball captain Mohammad Rizwan, who was rested during the Zimbabwe T20I series.
Babar Azam, Naseem Shah and Shaheen Shah Afridi have also returned to the T20I squad after missing the Zimbabwe series.
Pakistan have won the last two bilateral T20I series between the both nations, beating South Africa at home in February 2021 by 2-1 and then in their backyard by 3-1 in April 2021.
Mohammad Rizwan, white-ball captain:
“We have been on the road since last month and this is our third successive overseas tour, which has made the unit more proactive in terms of the preparations and getting used to the local conditions as soon as possible.
“The return of Babar, Naseem and Shaheen to the white-ball squads is a welcome development for the team and with a fine blend of youth and experience, we look forward to do our best against South Africa in this T20I series before the focus shifts to the other two formats.
“The wickets in South Africa will challenge us but at the same time our pacers will benefit from the conditions as well. With the help of Allah, we are eager to continue the winning momentum from the last tour against Zimbabwe.”
Pakistan T20I squad: Mohammad Rizwan (captain & wk), Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Haris Rauf, Jahandad Khan, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Hasnain, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Omair Bin Yousuf, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sufyan Moqim, Tayyab Tahir and Usman Khan (wk)
South Africa T20I squad: Heinrich Klaasen (captain), Ottneil Baartman, Matthew Breetzke, Donovan Ferreira, Reeza Hendricks, Patrick Kruger, George Linde, Kwena Maphaka, David Miller, Anrich Nortje, Nqaba Peter, Ryan Rickelton, Tabraiz Shamsi, Andile Simelane, Rassie van der Dussen
Schedule of matches:
10 Dec – 1st T20I vs South Africa at Kingsmead, Durban (9pm PKT)
13 Dec – 2nd T20I vs South Africa at SuperSport Park, Centurion (9pm PKT)
14 Dec – 3rd T20I vs South Africa at The Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg (9pm PKT)
17 Dec – 1st ODI vs South Africa at Boland Bank Park, Paarl (5pm PKT)
19 Dec – 2nd ODI vs South Africa at Newlands Cricket Ground, Cape Town (5pm PKT)
22 Dec – 3rd ODI vs South Africa at The Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg (5pm PKT)
26 Dec – 1st Test vs South Africa at SuperSport Park, Centurion (1pm PKT)
3 Jan – 2nd Test vs South Africa at Newlands Cricket Ground, Cape Town (1pm PKT)
