Pakistan, South Africa women to play T20 series before World Cup

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) will host a three-match T20 series against South Africa to bolster the preparations of Pakistan team ahead of the Women’s T20 World Cup.

The series will be held at the Multan Stadium. The three T20 matches are set for September 16, 18, and 20. The first two matches will be played under the lights, starting at 7:00 PM, while the third match will be a day game, beginning at 10:00 AM.

The 2024 Women’s T20 World Cup, initially scheduled to take place in Bangladesh, has been relocated to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) due to political unrest in the original host country. The tournament will now be staged in Dubai and Sharjah from October 3 to 20, 2024.

Tania Mallick, Head of Women’s Cricket at the PCB, expressed her excitement about the upcoming series. “Hosting the South African women’s team at home is a great opportunity for the Pakistan team to prepare well for the UAE World Cup. The series is also a testament to PCB’s commitment to promoting women’s cricket and providing our players with opportunities to shine on the international stage,” she said.

She further highlighted that the matches would help the Pakistan team address any gaps in their performance and enhance their cohesion as a unit. “This series will help our girls overcome shortcomings in their ranks and develop them into a strong unit for the big event,” Mallick said.

After the series, South Africa will depart for the UAE on 21 September, while Pakistan will leave on 23 September. Pakistan are in Group A of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024, along with Australia, India, New Zealand, and Sri Lanka, while South Africa are grouped with Bangladesh, England, Scotland and the West Indies.

Following warm-up matches against Scotland and Bangladesh on 28 and 30 September, respectively, Pakistan will face Sri Lanka on 3 October in Sharjah, followed by matches against India on 6 October in Dubai, Australia on 11 October in Dubai and New Zealand on 14 October in Dubai.

Meanwhile, the PCB has confirmed that the squad announced for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024 will feature in the three-match series against South Africa.

Squad: Fatima Sana (captain), Aliya Riaz, Diana Baig, Gull Feroza, Iram Javed, Muneeba Ali (wicket-keeper), Nashra Sundhu, Nida Dar, Omaima Sohail, Sadaf Shamas, Sadia Iqbal (subject to fitness), Sidra Amin, Syeda Aroob Shah, Tasmia Rubab and Tuba Hassan.

Najiha Alvi (wicket-keeper, traveling reserve), Rameen Shamim and Umm-e-Hani (both non-traveling reserves) will be part of the pre-series training camp and series in Multan. However, only Najiha will travel to the UAE with the squad.

To prepare for the home series, the Pakistan women’s training camp will commence at the Multan Cricket Stadium on Sunday, 1 September.

Player support personnel:

Hina Munawar (manager), Muhammad Wasim (head coach), Junaid Khan (assistant coach – bowling), Hanif Malik (assistant coach – fielding), Abdur Rehman (spin bowling coach), Imran Khalil (strength and conditioning coach), Raza Kitchlew (media and digital manager), Rabia Siddiq (physiotherapist) and Waleed Ahmed (analyst).