Pakistan cricket team will depart for South Africa in December to play all three format series, including T20 international, one-day international (ODI) and Test, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced this on Friday.
The PCB said three T20I matches would be played between December 10 and 14 in Durban, Centurion, and Johannesburg. While, Paarl, Cape Town, and Johannesburg will host three ODIs from December 17 to 22. On the other hand, two ICC World Test Championship 2023-25 matches will also be held — one at the Centurion cricket ground from December 26 to 30 and another at the Cape Town cricket ground from January 3 to 7.
The cricket board said in a press release that the national side will depart for Durban on December 2 after returning from Australia on November 19. Pakistan will play a series of three ODIs and three T20Is from November 4 to 18 in Australia.
“After completing their African safari on January 8, the national side will take on New Zealand and South Africa in a three-nation ODI tournament on home turf, which will be followed by the eight-team ICC Champions Trophy 2025 in Pakistan,” the PCB said.
Providing details of Pakistan’s busy schedule in the second half of 2024, the PCB said prior to the tours of Australia and South Africa, Pakistan would host Bangladesh and England for two and three Tests, respectively.
Hence, they would play seven Tests, minimum of 10 ODIs, and six T20Is in the six-month from August 2024 to January 2025, it added.
Whereas, this will be Pakistan’s seventh Test tour of South Africa since 1994-95. Their two Test wins were in the 1997-98 and 2006-2007 series. In the Durban Test in 1997-98, Pakistan won by 29 runs at the back of centuries from Azhar Mahmood (132) and Saeed Anwar (118), match figures of nine for 149 by Mushtaq Ahmed and a first innings five-fer by Shoaib Akhtar. In the 2006-2007 Port Elizabeth Test, Pakistan won by five wickets with Inzamam-ul-Haq being named as Player of the Match for his 92 in the first innings.
In ODIs, Pakistan has won two of the last three series in 2013-2014 and 2020-21, while South Africa triumphed in the 2002-2003 series by 4-1, in 2006-2007 by 3-1, in 2012-2013 by (3-2), and 2018-2019 by 3-2.
In 12 T20Is to date, Pakistan leads 6-5 in head-to-head encounters, with one match ending in no-result.
10 Dec – 1st T20I, Durban
13 Dec – 2nd T20I, Centurion
14 Dec – 3rd T20I, Johannesburg
17 Dec – 1st ODI, Paarl
19 Dec – 2nd ODI, Cape Town
22 Dec – 3rd ODI, Johannesburg
26-30 Dec – 1st Test, Centurion
3-7 Jan – 2nd Test, Cape Town
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