Pakistan will shuffle two spots in their white-ball side ahead of the South Africa tour in December. The tour is fully comprehensive, with three T20 Internationals, three One Day Internationals, and two Test matches-the latter part of the ICC World Test Championship cycle 2023-25.
Pakistan media report that the white-ball side will see left-handed batsmen Fakhar Zaman and Imam-ul-Haq returning to the squad. For Fakhar Zaman, this marks a return after he was out of the national line-up for quite some time. The players have not been part of the side for some time and would add much strength to the batting. Fakhar has been excluded lately for coming out in public in support of his fellow teammate Babar Azam who had made headlines over controversy regarding the national side selection, where disciplinary actions were given by the Pakistan Cricket Board. As the tensions reportedly are dying down, Fakhar seems to be ready to get back.
With an ODIs average of 48.27, yet another reliable performer Imam-ul-Haq will also go into the Pakistan side as his last game in this 50-over format was back with South Africa during ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 and in these last two years and above matches Imam has been proving useful to Pakistan’s upper-order as well. Their addition would strengthen the sides highly for the longer versions also.
The Pakistan-South Africa tour will start with a series of T20I and then go on to play the ODI series. It will finish with two Test matches played at significant South African venues like Durban, Centurion, and Cape Town.
Tour Schedule
T20I Series
Dec 10 – 1st T20I, Durban
Dec 13 – 2nd T20I, Centurion
Dec 14 – 3rd T20I, Johannesburg
ODI Series
Dec 17 – 1st ODI, Paarl
Dec 19 – 2nd ODI, Cape Town
Dec 22 – 3rd ODI, Johannesburg
Test Series (WTC Cycle)
Dec 26-30: 1st Test, Centurion
Jan 3-7: 2nd Test, Cape Town
To Read More: Sports