Pakistan Shaheens all set for Zimbabwe challenge

03 May, 2023

LAHORE-Imran Butt-led Pakistan Shaheens will be eying for a winning start when they take on Zimbabwe A in the four-day match starting tomorrow at the Kwekwe Sports Club in Kwekwe.

The first four-dayer will be followed by another four-dayer and six 50-over matches that will be played from 10 to 27 May in Harare and Mutare. Pakistan Shaheens arrived in Harare on 30 April and had one-day training session at the Kwekwe Sports Club following an 11-day camp at the Hanif Muhammad High Performance Centre in Karachi and then an additional two-day camp at the National Cricket Academy in Lahore before the team’s departure to Zimbabwe.

The squad includes 16 players and four reserve players. Six players apart from the captain and Test cricketer Imran Butt have already represented Pakistan in international cricket. These include Hussain Talat (1 ODI, 18 T20Is), Kamran Ghulam (1 ODI), Mir Hamza (3 Tests), Mohammad Ali (2 Tests), Shahnawaz Dahani (2 ODIs, 11 T20Is) and Saim Ayub (8 T20Is).

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Pakistan Shaheens’ last bilateral series was against Sri Lanka in Oct/Nov 2021. That series consisted of two four-dayers and three 50-over matches with Shaheens winning the rain-affected three-match series 1-0 and playing out a drawn four-day series. In the first four-day match in Pallekele, Kamran Ghulam and Omair Bin Yousaf – both part of the forthcoming series, scored half-centuries against Sri Lanka A.

Imran Butt said: “Our preparations have been going well, we have been working on adapting to the conditions here. The players are determined to play their best cricket and make the most of this opportunity.”

PAKISTAN SHAHEENS: Imran Butt (capt), Hussain Talat (vc), Aamir Jamal, Abdul Wahid Bangalzai, Haseebullah, Kamran Ghulam, Mehran Mumtaz, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Huraira, Mubasir Khan, Omair Bin Yousuf, Qasim Akram, Rohail Nazir (wk) and Shahnawaz Dahani.