Pak women cricketers to tour South Africa next month

LAHORE   –  Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Monday announced that Pakistan women’s cricket team will tour South Africa for three ODIs and three T20Is to be played in Durban and Pietermaritzburg from January 20 to February 3. 

In consultation and discussions with Cricket South Africa (CSA), the series has been finalised to ensure women’s cricket continues to build on the momentum and successes following the trailblazing ICC Women’s Championship 2017-2020, ICC Women’s World Cup 2017 and the ICC Women’s T20 World Cups 2018 and 2020. 

This additional series has also been organised to help both Pakistan and South Africa prepare for the upcoming assignments, in particular Pakistan, who will feature in the ICC Women’s World Cup Qualifier in July 2021 for the event proper to be held in New Zealand in early 2022. South Africa, along with world champions England, Australia, India and hosts New Zealand, have already qualified for the World Cup after securing top positions in the ICC Women’s Championship 2017-20. 

The series will start and finish in Durban with the first ODI on January 20 and the third T20I on February 3. Both matches will be played under lights. Durban will also stage the second ODI on January 23 before action will move to Pietermaritzburg where the third ODI and opening two T20Is will be played on January 26, 29 and 31, respectively. 

To prepare and select the best available side and in continuation to the Women’s High Performance Camp and the National Triangular T20 Women’s Cricket Championship, the women’s national selection committee has invited 27 women cricketers for a training and preparation camp, which will be held at the Hanif Mohammad High Performance Centre in Karachi from December 20. 

From the start of the training camp until the side’s departure for Durban on January 11, the women cricketers will remain and train in a bio-secure environment, besides undergoing routine testing in line with the PCB Covid-19 Protocols. Prior to joining the camp, each cricketer will require a negative test and another negative test after reporting for the camp before being allowed to integrate with other members of the group. 

The tour to South Africa will also be the first official assignment of head coach David Hemp and bowling coach Arshad Khan. While Hemp joined forces in October, Arshad was appointed in November. M Kamran Hussain will be the assistant coach at the training camp. This will be Pakistan women’s side’s second tour to South Africa within 18 months. In May 2019, Pakistan and South Africa featured in one of the most thrilling, keenly contested and exciting women’s series to date. 

Total 27 probables for the South Africa tour are: Aiman Anwar, Aliya Riaz, Anam Amin, Ayesha Naseem, Ayesha Zafar, Bismah Maroof, Diana Baig, Fatima Sana Khan, Iram Javed, Javeria Khan, Javeria Rauf, Kainat Imtiaz, Kaynat Hafeez, Maham Tariq, Muneeba Ali, Nahida Khan, Najiha Alvi, Nashra Sandhu, Natalia Pervaiz, Nida Dar, Omaima Sohail, Rameen Shamim, Saba Nazir, Sadia Iqbal, Sidra Amin, Sidra Nawaz and Syeda Aroob Shah.