Auckland, Pakistan’s cricket team, under the new captaincy of Shaheen Shah Afridi, is gearing up to face New Zealand in a crucial five-match T20I series starting January 12 at Eden Park in Auckland. This series marks the beginning of Pakistan’s preparations for the upcoming T20 World Cup.
According to Pakistan Cricket Board, this series is significant for Pakistan, especially with Afridi leading the team for the first time. The team last played T20Is in April 2023 against New Zealand in Pakistan. Mohammad Rizwan, appointed as vice-captain, was the top run-scorer in that series, while Haris Rauf led in the bowling department.
The squad sees the inclusion of uncapped players like leg-spinner Usama Mir, pacer Mohammad Abbas Afridi, and wicketkeeper-batter Haseebullah. Additionally, the team welcomes back Sahibzada Farhan, Azam Khan, and Aamir Jamal, adding depth to the lineup. However, spinner Abrar Ahmed is ruled out due to an injury sustained during the Test tour of Australia.
Afridi, in the pre-series press conference, expressed pride in captaining the team and highlighted Pakistan’s strong T20 track record. He emphasized the team’s focus on securing better results in major tournaments, particularly the World Cup. With 17 games before the World Cup, Afridi mentioned the aim to finalize the team’s combination and strengthen the bench, including testing younger talent and rotating players.
The full Pakistan squad for the New Zealand tour includes Shaheen Shah Afridi (captain), Mohammad Rizwan (vice-captain), Aamir Jamal, Abbas Afridi, Azam Khan, Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Usama Mir, and Zaman Khan.
The series schedule is as follows:
1st T20 on January 12 at Eden Park, Auckland
2nd T20 on January 14 at Seddon Park, Hamilton
3rd T20 on January 17 at University Oval, Dunedin
4th T20 on January 19 at Hagley Oval, Christchurch
5th T20 on January 21 at Hagley Oval, Christchurch