- Babar, Naseem and Shaheen return to the T20I squad.
- Radwan believes the players will benefit from the conditions.
- Pakistan has won the last two T20I series against South Africa.
Durban: Pakistan and South Africa are set to face each other in a full-format series for the first time since 2019, which will begin with the first of three T20Is on Tuesday at Kingsmead Stadium in Durban.
The second and third T20Is are scheduled to be held on December 13 and 14 at SuperSport Park, Centurion and The Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg respectively.
The three ODIs will be played on December 17, 19 and 22, followed by the Centurion Test on December 26 and the Cape Town Test on January 3.
A press release issued on Monday said the white-ball team, led by Mohamed Redouane, arrived in Durban on Friday and participated in two training sessions.
Pakistan’s T20I squad, announced on December 4, saw the return of star batsman Babar Azam, spinner Naseem Shah and Shaheen Shah Afridi, who missed the recently concluded Zimbabwe series.
The squad also includes left-arm pacer Sufyan Muqim, who took five wickets for just three runs in the second T20 International against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo.
Radwan said in a statement: “We have been on the road since last month and this is our third foreign tour in a row, which has made the unit more proactive in terms of preparations and getting used to local conditions as quickly as possible.” “
“The return of Babar, Naseem and Shaheen to the white-ball squads is a welcome development for the team and with a great mix of youth and experience, we look forward to doing our best against South Africa in the T20I series before the focus shifts and added to the other two formats.
Speaking about the South African conditions, the skipper said that the wicket will pose a challenge for the team but at the same time, the pacers will benefit from the conditions. “We are keen to continue the winning momentum we achieved in the last round against Zimbabwe.”
Pakistan are coming off the white-ball tour of Zimbabwe, where they won the one-day series and the T20 series. Before that, they were in Australia where they lost all three T20 matches but won the one-day series 2-1.
Meanwhile, the South African Test team was on the field against Sri Lanka in Gkbirha, and a separate group of players were in Pretoria to prepare for the T20 series.
The T20 side, captained by Heinrich Klaasen, traveled to Durban on Sunday with the first T20 international match to be played on Tuesday – the day after South Africa completed a Test victory in its wake.
Only Ryan Rickelton of the current South African Test squad is scheduled to play in the T20 series – although regular white-ball skipper Aiden Markram as well as Tristan Stubbs, Kagiso Rabada and Marko Janssen would all be potential selections in a full-strength squad.
South African white-ball coach Rob Walter has called up fast bowler Anrich Nortier and left-arm spinner Tabrez Shamsi for the T20 series.
Nortje and Shamsi were two of South Africa’s standout bowlers in the T20 World Cup, helping the team reach the final. But they opted out of national contracts in order to play in franchise leagues around the world.
Despite their successful World Cup campaign, Walter is under pressure due to South Africa’s poor record in bilateral series – they have lost five series and drawn two of seven series – but he has rarely been able to field a full-strength team.
Pakistan have won the last two bilateral T20I series between the two countries, beating South Africa at home in February 2021 by a score of 2-1 and then in their own backyard by a score of 3-1 in April 2021.
Pakistan T20I lineup: Muhammad Rizwan (captain and week), Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Haris Rauf, Jehandad Khan, Muhammad Abbas Afridi, Muhammad Hasnain, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Umair Bin Yousuf, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sufyan Muqim, Tayyab. Tahir and Usman Khan (week)
South Africa T20I lineup: Heinrich Klassen (captain), Otniel Bartmann, Matthew Bretzky, Donovan Ferreira, Reda Hendricks, Patrick Krüger, George Linde, Kwena Mafaka, David Miller, Anrich Nortje, Nqaba Peter, Ryan Rickelton, Tabriz Shamsi, Andeel Simelane, Rassie van der Dussen.
Schedule of Pakistan’s tour of South Africa:
10 December – 1st T20I, Durban
December 13 – 2nd T20I, Centurion
December 14 – 3rd T20I, Johannesburg
December 17 – First international match in Paarl
December 19 – 2nd ODI, Cape Town
December 22 – 3rd ODI, Johannesburg
December 26-30 – First Test, Centurion
January 3-7 – Second Test, Cape Town
– With additional inputs from AFP