Pakistan to tour S Africa in December for T20I, ODI, Test series

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced on Friday that the Green Shirts would tour South Africa in December for three T20Is, three ODIs and two Tests.

Durban, Centurion, and Johannesburg will host the T20Is from December 10 to 14. The ODIs will be played between December 17 and 22 in Paarl, Cape Town, and Johannesburg, while the two ICC World Test Championship 2023-25 matches will be held at Centurion and Cape Town — from December 26 to 30 and from January 3 to 7 respectively — the cricket board said in a press release.

The PCB said the national side will depart for Durban on December 2 after returning from Australia on November 19, having featured in a series of three ODIs and three T20Is from November 4 to 18. After completing their African safari on January 8, the national side will take on New Zealand and South Africa in a three-nation ODI tournament on home turf, which will be followed by the eight-team ICC Champions Trophy 2025 in Pakistan.

“Prior to the tours of Australia and South Africa, Pakistan will host Bangladesh and England for two and three Tests, respectively. This means they will play seven Tests, minimum of 10 ODIs, and six T20Is in the six-month period from August 2024 to January 2025,” the PCB said giving details about Pakistan’s busy schedule in the second half of 2024.

This will be Pakistan’s seventh Test tour of South Africa since 1994-95. Their two Test wins were in the 1997-98 and 2006-2007 series. In the Durban Test in 1997-98, Pakistan won by 29 runs at the back of centuries from Azhar Mahmood (132) and Saeed Anwar (118), match figures of nine for 149 by Mushtaq Ahmed and a first innings five-fer by Shoaib Akhtar. In the 2006-2007 Port Elizabeth Test, Pakistan won by five wickets with Inzamam-ul-Haq being named as Player of the Match for his 92 in the first innings.

In ODIs, Pakistan has won two of the last three series in 2013-2014 and 2020-21, while South Africa triumphed in the 2002-2003 series by 4-1, in 2006-2007 by 3-1, in 2012-2013 by (3-2), and 2018-2019 by 3-2.

In 12 T20Is to date, Pakistan leads 6-5 in head-to-head encounters, with one match ending in no-result.

Tour schedule:

10 Dec – 1st T20I, Durban

13 Dec – 2nd T20I, Centurion

14 Dec – 3rd T20I, Johannesburg

17 Dec – 1st ODI, Paarl

19 Dec – 2nd ODI, Cape Town

22 Dec – 3rd ODI, Johannesburg

26-30 Dec – 1st Test, Centurion

3-7 Jan – 2nd Test, Cape Town.