Pakistan skipper Fatima Sana won the toss and elected to bat first in their first one-day international against South Africa in Lahore on Tuesday in the lead-up to the Women’s World Cup.
The World Cup, to be hosted later this month under a hybrid model across India and Sri Lanka, will see all of Pakistan’s fixtures staged in Colombo, with political tensions ruling out travel between the two neighbours.
Pakistan open their immediate run-in with a three-match ODI series against South Africa in Lahore from today, following the conclusion of a training camp at the National Cricket Academy and the Gaddafi Stadium.
On Monday, speaking at the pre-match press conference in Lahore, Fatima had said: “The specific aim is to prepare for the World Cup and execute our plans in this series.”
“A series like this is very beneficial for the team ahead of the World Cup. It gives the players a good opportunity to put into practice all the preparation they have done in recent times,“ she was quoted as having said by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
She added that it is widely known that Pakistan rely on their bowling attack, so this time the Green Team’s focus will be on getting more support from the batting unit as well.
“We worked a lot on batting during the camp,” the Pakistani skipper said.
The ODIs will be staged at the Gaddafi Stadium on September 16, 19 and 22, with the first ball of all matches to be bowled at 3:30pm, according to the PCB.
Pakistan’s 15-member squad is captained by Fatima, while Laura Wolvaardt leads the visiting side. In the build-up to the series, Pakistan held a two-week pre-series camp in Lahore, which included practice sessions and scenario-based matches.
The squad features one uncapped player, Eyman Fatima, who recently made her T20I debut against Ireland in Dublin in August.
The series provides both sides with an opportunity to finalise preparations for the eight-team World Cup, set to take place from September 30 to November 2 in India and Sri Lanka. Pakistan will play all their matches in Sri Lanka.
In head-to-head, in 28 ODI matches, South Africa had an upper hand against Pakistan, but the last time both sides met, Pakistan defeated South Africa by eight wickets in the ICC Women’s Championship 2022-25 series fixture at the National Stadium in Karachi on September 14, 2023.
