Tag: Australia tour to Pakistan

  • Pakistan announces squad for Test series against Australia

    Pakistan announces squad for Test series against Australia

    Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has announced 16 players and five reserves for the three Tests against Australia, which will be played in Rawalpindi (March4-8), Karachi (March 12-16) and Lahore (March 21-25).

    Test players who are not involved in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2022 will assemble in Karachi on Wednesday, February 16, for a training camp that will be held at the National Stadium.

    From the series against Bangladesh, three changes have been made in the national squad.

    Haris Rauf, who was in the side for South Africa and Zimbabwe Tests in 2021, has returned to replace off-spinner Bilal Asif, while Shan Masood, who last played in New Zealand in the 2020-21 season, has taken over from Abid Ali, who is completing his rehabilitation after being diagnosed with Acute Coronary Syndrome. Yasir Shah has been added to the reserve pool.

    Chief selector Muhammad Wasim in a statement said: “We have opted for consistency for the important home series against Australia and changes have only been made where absolutely necessary. This is to give the boys confidence, reward them for their impressive performances in the longer version of the game in 2021 and continue to build the side for the future.”

    “These are the best available, most talented and in-form players in the domestic circuit. I am confident they will put up an impressive performance against a formidable Australia side,” he added.

    Test squad:

    Babar Azam (captain), Mohammad Rizwan (vice-captain), Abdullah Shafique, Azhar Ali, Faheem Ashraf, Fawad Alam, Haris Rauf, Hassan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Nawaz, Nauman Ali, Sajid Khan, Saud Shakeel, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shan Masood, and Zahid Mahmood.

    Reserves players selected for the tour are Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Abbas, Naseem Shah, Sarfaraz Ahmed, and Yasir Shah.

    Cricket Australia announced the full-strength squad for Pakistan tour on Tuesday. While squads for the limited-overs matches that will follow the Tests are yet to be named, the fact that no Test players have pulled out is a vote of confidence for the tour.

  • Australian Marnus Labuschagne ‘excited’ to be a part of series against Pak

    Australian Marnus Labuschagne ‘excited’ to be a part of series against Pak

    The number one ranked Test batter Marnus Labuschagne is excited to be part of Australia’s historic tour to Pakistan, starting from March 4 in Rawalpindi.

    The Aussies are scheduled to tour Pakistan for three Tests, three ODIs and one T20I. While replying to a fan on Twitter, the 27-year-old said that it is the “first Australia tour to Pakistan in 24 years. So excited to be a part of this series.”

    Earlier in January, in a question and answer (Q & A) session, Labuschagne had said that he can’t wait to play in Pakistan and is itching to face ICC Cricketer of the Year, Shaheen Afridi.

    The tour will now start and end in Rawalpindi with the opening Test to be played from March 4-8 and the four white-ball matches to be played from March 29 to April 5.

    The change in the first Test venue means that the second Test will be played in Karachi from March 12-16 and the third in Lahore from March 21-25.

    The only T20 match of the series will be played in Rawalpindi on April 5.

    The schedule was earlier revised to ease logistical and operational challenges as well as to avoid Pakistan Day rehearsals, which usually commence in Islamabad in the second week of March.

    Meanwhile, it must be noted that Labuschagne has amassed 2220 runs in 23 Tests for Australia. The right-hander has scored six centuries since making his debut in 2018.

    Cricket Australia announced the full-strength squad for Pakistan tour on Tuesday. While squads for the limited-overs matches that will follow the Tests are yet to be named, the fact that no Test players have pulled out is a vote of confidence for the tour.

  • Australia announces full-strength squad for Pakistan tour

    Australia announces full-strength squad for Pakistan tour

    Cricket Australia (CA) has named a full-strength squad for their first tour to Pakistan in 24 years, with Ashton Agar the only addition from the extended group of players that won the Ashes.

    The CA announced the team after it’s Executive Board’s endorsement for the tour following a schedule change agreed by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) due to logistical challenges.

    Mitch Marsh, Josh Inglis, and Mitchell Swepson have all been named in an 18-man squad for the historic three-Test tour of Pakistan.

    According to Australian website Cricket.com.au, while squads for the limited-overs matches that will follow the Tests are yet to be named, the fact that no Test players have pulled out is a vote of confidence for the tour.

    Thorough security assessments were conducted by the security experts hired by the Australian board before the tour was given the go-ahead.

    The report stated that Jhye Richardson is the only player of note to miss the trip as Australia manages the body of the 25-year-old fast bowler, who has struggled with injuries over his career.

    “This squad covers all scenarios, including the conditions given that it has been such a long time since Australia was last in Pakistan,” selection chief George Bailey said.

    “With several subcontinent tours and a one-day World Cup in India on the near horizon, this is a great first test challenge for the group after the successful home Ashes series.”

    “It’s also a very historic tour given the length of time since an Australian side last toured Pakistan.”

    Australia Test squad:

    Pat Cummins (c), Ashton Agar, Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Michael Neser, Steve Smith (vc), Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Swepson, David Warner

  • Australia’s white-ball captain Aaron Finch ‘can’t wait’ to tour Pakistan

    Australia’s white-ball captain Aaron Finch ‘can’t wait’ to tour Pakistan

    Australian captain Aaron Finch has said that he cannot wait to go to Pakistan for the white-ball leg, consisting of three ODIs and one T20I.

    “As a player, I can’t wait to go to Pakistan for the white-ball leg,” said Finch, according to Sportstar.

    The right-handed batter said that Pakistan has not been able to play cricket at home for a long time.

    “That’s one part of the world that’s been deprived of (international) cricket for a long time now, and world cricket’s in a much better place when Pakistan’s thriving as a cricket nation,” he added.

    Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and Cricket Australia (CA) on Friday announced the revised schedule of the Australia men’s cricket team’s tour of Pakistan in 2022.

    The Australian cricket team will arrive in Pakistan in the last week to play three Tests, three ODIs, and one T20I at three different venues Rawalpindi, Karachi, and Lahore.

    It will be Australia’s first tour of Pakistan after 24 long years. The Aussies’ last tour of Pakistan was in 1998 when they won the three-match Test series by 1-0 as two matches were drawn.

  • Fawad Chaudhry welcomes Australian team, recommends Lahore and Karachi’s desi food

    Fawad Chaudhry welcomes Australian team, recommends Lahore and Karachi’s desi food

    Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry has welcomed the Australian cricket team to Pakistan after they confirmed their tour to Pakistan for the first time in 24 years. Australia will play a full-fledged series in three Tests, three ODIs and a solitary T20I on their tour starting March 4.

    The minister also recommended the Australian team to try desi food in Lahore and Karachi.

    Taking to Twitter, he wrote: “Welcome to Pakistan a beautiful country of ours, May you enjoy your trip and do try Our very Desi food in Karachi and Lahore.”

    Rawalpindi will host the tour-opening first Test, swapping with Karachi, which will now host the second Test from March 12.

    The Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore will be the venue for the final Test.

    The schedule has been revised to ease logistical and operational challenges as well as to avoid Pakistan Day rehearsals, which usually commence in Islamabad in the second week of March.

    The two cricket boards have also agreed that the Australia Test side will complete their isolation in Australia, before arriving in Islamabad on February 27 on a chartered flight. After a one-day room isolation, they will hold training sessions at the Pindi Cricket Stadium.

    Australia’s white-ball players are expected to arrive in Lahore on March 24 following isolation in Australia. After a one-day isolation upon arrival, they will integrate with other members of the side and travel to Islamabad for the first ODI in Rawalpindi on March 29.

  • Pat Cummins hopes ‘close to a full-strength’ squad to tour Pakistan

    Pat Cummins hopes ‘close to a full-strength’ squad to tour Pakistan

    Australia’s Test captain Pat Cummins is confident that a near full-strength squad will tour Pakistan as only a few players have security concerns for the forthcoming tour.

    According to the Australian Associated Press (AAP), Cummins is optimistic, while also acknowledging the pre-tour preparations made by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).

    “I think we’ll get close to a full-strength squad. There is still a little bit of more work to do,” he said.

    “We have received a lot of information and it has been great. All the pre-tour security and biosecurity work has been done and it’s been fantastic,” he added.

    Australia’s red ball captain also revealed that the majority of the players are confident in the tour’s continuation, while the others are concerned about security. Cummins, on the other hand, is committed to back his teammates if anyone withdraws.

    “There are a couple of players still keen to get a bit more information but everyone is really pumped and feeling relatively comfortable,” he said.

    “If anyone doesn’t make the tour it is absolutely okay, we will back them for sure,” he added.

    Earlier, Australia’s pacer Josh Hazelwood had said that he will not be surprised if a few players will miss Pakistan tour.

    Meanwhile, it is worth mentioning that Australia’s historic tour to Pakistan comes after a gap of 24 years and is set to begin on March 3. The tour is comprised of three Test matches that will be contested in Karachi, Rawalpindi, and Lahore, followed by a three-match ODI series from March 29 to April 2. On April 5, a single T20I will be played to conclude the tour.

  • Josh Hazelwood will not be surprised if some Australian players skip Pak tour

    Josh Hazelwood will not be surprised if some Australian players skip Pak tour

    Australian fast bowler Josh Hazelwood has said on Wednesday he would not be surprised if security fears prompt some players to opt out of the upcoming Pakistan tour, as he eyes a comeback to the national team after recovering from injury.

    A media report last week said many in the Australian camp were apprehensive about whether Pakistan would be safe.

    Hazlewood said Cricket Australia’s reassurances had eased his concern.

    “There’s a lot of things in place and there’s been a lot of work in the background … so the trust is quite high there from the players,” Hazlewood told cricket.com.au.

    “But there’d certainly be some concerns from the players and I wouldn’t be surprised if some of them don’t make the tour.

    “And that’s very fair. People will discuss it with their families … and come up with an answer and everyone respects that.”

    Read More – Australian A-List cricketers to miss Sri Lanka tour to prepare for Pak series

    Hazlewood, 31, part of a 16-man Australian squad for the five-match Twenty20 home series against Sri Lanka starting on Feb 11, is raring to go after missing all but the first Test in the recent Ashes series.

    Sidelined by a side strain after the first Test in Brisbane, he was forced to watch on as his teammates celebrated a 4-0 series shellacking.

    “I’ve certainly had a typical side strain, where you tear your oblique (muscle), you can’t bowl another ball and are out for at least six or seven weeks,” he said.

    “This one was different … the strength came back really quickly, and I could do a lot of things in the gym. It was just bowling, that dynamic movement, that caused a bit of grief. It was an unusual one.”

    Long part of Australia’s three-pronged pace attack with Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc, Hazlewood has taken 215 test wickets at an average of 25 runs per wicket.

    But he must now wrest his test place back from Scott Boland, who took 18 wickets in three Tests, including an unlikely haul of six wickets for seven in the second innings of his debut.

    Australia are scheduled to play three Tests, three one-day internationals and one Twenty20 starting on March 3 in their first trip to Pakistan in 24 years.

  • Australian A-List cricketers to miss Sri Lanka tour to prepare for Pak series

    Australian A-List cricketers to miss Sri Lanka tour to prepare for Pak series

    Cricket Australia has confirmed that they are preparing for Pakistan tour and this is the reason why their players David Warner and Mitchell Marsh will not attend the Sri Lankan series.

    Read More – ‘All looking really positive’ for Pak tour, says Australian Captain Pat Cummins

    Chief selector of the Australian team George Bailey, while announcing the team for the Sri Lankan series, revealed that David Warner, Mitchell Marsh and others are granted leaves to prepare for the Pakistan tour.

    The head coach of the Australian side, Justin Langer, will miss the upcoming T20I series against Sri Lanka as he will be busy preparing for Australia’s full-fledged tour to Pakistan in March this year. The Aussies will play three Tests, three ODIs as well as one T20I match against Pakistan.

    Aaron Finch will continue to lead the Australian side in the series.

    Australia T20I Squad:

    Aaron Finch (C), Ashton Agar, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Moises Henriques, Josh Inglis, Ben McDermott, Glenn Maxwell, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade, Adam Zampa

    On the other hand, Australian media claims that Cricket Australia and Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) are in a process of dialogues to play all the matches at one venue. Earlier, the first Test match of the series was set to start from March 3 in Karachi. The second in Rawalpindi from March 12 to 16 and the third in Lahore from March 21 to 25.

    The Australian cricket team will be visiting Pakistan in March and April.

  • ‘We are in this together’: Australian cricket chief says if team tours Pak, ‘I will go with them’

    ‘We are in this together’: Australian cricket chief says if team tours Pak, ‘I will go with them’

    Australian Cricketers Association (ACA) Chief Todd Greenberg has told Australian cricketers that he will travel to Pakistan with them if the tour gets final approval but respects the wishes of “one or two” who might want to back out of the trip. If the team gets security clearance to travel, it will be Australia’s first tour to Pakistan since 1998.

    “I’ve made an assurance to the players that they won’t go alone. If they’re going to Pakistan, I’ll be going with them and I think that’s important. It’s an opportunity to show the players that we’re in this together,” Greenberg told Australian publication The Sydney Morning Herald (SMH).

    “The ACA accompanied Cricket Australia on a pre-tour of Pakistan late last year, and the reports were all very positive,” he further added.

    “But we’ll continue to take the advice of DFAT and other government organisations, as we need to be able to satisfy not just the players, but their families, that it’s safe to tour.” International teams have been reluctant to travel to Pakistan since the terrorist attack on the Sri Lanka team bus in Lahore in 2009.

    However, international players have competed in Pakistan Super League (PSL) and the West Indies also travelled to Pakistan in December 2021 for a Twenty20 series.

    Greenberg is aware that despite security assurances, a few cricketers might be unwilling to travel to Pakistan but he won’t force anyone.

    “There may be one or two players who won’t be comfortable despite the best advice we give, and that’s OK, we need to respect that.”

    CA chief executive Nick Hockley is also planning to travel to Pakistan for at least some part of the tour, while the interim chair Richard Freudenstein may visit for a period to meet with his counterpart Ramiz Raja, unless a new permanent chair is chosen by then, according to the report in the SMH.

    New Zealand and England had called off their tours to Pakistan ahead of the T20 World Cup last year, much to the disappointment of cricket fans in Pakistan.

    Chairman PCB Raja had earlier emphasised that cricketing nations need to back each other but said that “western bloc” was not helping the cause. He said he was expecting Australia to do the same what England and New Zealand did to them.

    It must be noted here that Pakistan will be hosting series with England twice in 2022. The Englishmen will visit Pakistan for seven-T20I series in September-October and they will return for a three-Test series starting in November, after the T20 World Cup in Australia.

    Pakistan and New Zealand Cricket Boards are also in constant talks to plan a series between the two nations.

    Meanwhile, the seventh edition of PSL is also set to kick start from January 27. International players from many cricketing nations will participate in the league.

  • Don’t go back on your commitment: Ben Cutting urges Aussies to tour Pakistan

    Don’t go back on your commitment: Ben Cutting urges Aussies to tour Pakistan

    Australian cricketer Ben Cutting has said that Aussies should not back out from a Pakistan tour and visit the country as there are no security issues.

    The 34-year-old stated that people in Pakistan are passionate about the game and hoped that Australia won’t go back on their commitment to tour the country.

    “I hope the Aussie boys get to tour there,” Cutting told AAP. “The locals would certainly love that . They’re just so passionate. They get massive crowds for games and if one of the best teams in the world, like Australia, are playing, they’d absolutely love it.”

    Cutting has regularly visited Pakistan, over the past few years, with stints in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) and also being a part of the World XI side for the exhibition series in 2017.

    “Not once have I been worried about the security side of things,” he said. “The second visit [during PSL] I was more worried about Covid than anything else because that was kicking off.”

    The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has already announced the details of Australia’s first tour of Pakistan since 1998, which will take place in March and April 2022, and comprise three Tests, three ODIs and one T20I.

    The Tests will be held in Karachi (March 3-7), Rawalpindi (March 12-16) and Lahore (March 21-25), while Lahore will host the four white-ball matches from March 29 to April 5.