Brisbane: Mohammad Rizwan is set to lead Pakistan’s T20I team, becoming the 12th man to be in charge, following a drought-breaking ODI series win over Australia last week. Pakistan will face Australia in three T20I matches on 14, 16, and 18 November in Brisbane, Sydney, and Hobart, respectively.
According to Pakistan Cricket Board, six players – Jahandad Khan, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Omair Bin Yousuf, Sahibzada Farhan, Sufiyan Moqim, and Usman Khan joined the T20I squad in Brisbane on 11 November after undergoing a five-day training camp in Karachi.
Pakistan and Australia’s last bilateral face-off in the T20I format occurred in March 2022 when Australia triumphed in a one-off T20I in Lahore. During Pakistan’s last T20I series in Australia in November 2019, the hosts won 2-0 after the opening game ended in no result.
Josh Inglis will lead Australia in this series, with Tim David and Nathan Ellis joining the squad. Josh Philippe has been brought in as a replacement for the injured Cooper Connolly.
Mohammad Rizwan expressed confidence after the ODI series victory, stating, “We are confident after beating Australia in the ODI series but international cricket is always challenging so we aim to do things as better as we can going into this T20I series against Australia. My intent is to keep everyone in the group involved and positive about the game.”
The Pakistan T20I squad includes Mohammad Rizwan (captain – wicket-keeper), Salman Ali Agha (vice-captain), Arafat Minhas, Babar Azam, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah, Jahandad Khan, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Omair Bin Yousuf, Sahibzada Farhan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sufyan Moqim, and Usman Khan.
The series will commence with the first T20I at the Brisbane Cricket Ground on 14 November, followed by the second T20I at the Sydney Cricket Ground on 16 November, and concluding with the third T20I at the Bellerive Oval in Hobart on 18 November.