The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has announced the Test, ODI, and T20I squads for the upcoming South Africa tour. After completing the ongoing Zimbabwe tour, where Pakistan have played a three-match ODI series and are playing another three-match T20I series, Pakistan will tour South Africa. After losing the first ODI, Pakistan won the ODI series against the hosts Zimbabwe by 2-1. On the other hand, while the last T20I will be played on December 5, Pakistan have already secured the T20I series by leading it 2-0. 

In the South Africa tour, Pakistan will play a three-match T20I series, a three-match ODI series, and a two-match Test series. The Test series will be a part of the 2023-2025 ICC World Test Championship. 

While Mohammad Rizwan will lead the T20I and ODI teams, Shan Masood will lead the Pakistan Test side. The T20I series, ODI series, and Test series will start on December 10, December 17, and December 26, respectively.

See Also: Bangladesh create history in Sabina Park, Register their maiden Test win in the Caribbean since 2009

Shaheen Shah Afridi is out of the Test squad

Last October, Babar Azam, Naseem Shah, and Shaheen Shah Afridi were dropped from the Test squad after losing the opening game of the home Test series against England. While Babar and Naseem have joined the Test squad for the South Africa tour, Shaheen Shah Afridi hasn’t been included in the Test team. For the South Africa tour, Babar is in all three squads, while Afridi is missing from the Test team, and Naseem will play in the ODI and Test series. 

Mohammad Abbas, who last played a Test match for Pakistan in 2021, has returned to the Test squad. While the left-arm spinner Noman Ali will travel to South Africa for the Test series, the off-spinner Sajid Khan has been dropped only due to pace-friendly conditions.

Pakistan never won a Test series in South Africa

Pakistan have won two T20I series, and two ODI series but have won only two Tests and never won a Test series. Pakistan drew a Test series in South Africa in 1998, where they recorded their first Test win in South Africa, and won their last Test match in 2007. 

Pakistan's full squad for South Africa tour

T20Is: Mohammad Rizwan (Captain, wk), Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Haris Rauf, Jahandad Khan, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Hasnain, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Omair Bin Yousuf, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sufyan Moqim, Tayyab Tahir, Usman Khan (wk).

ODIs: Mohammad Rizwan (Captain, wk), Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Haris Rauf, Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Hasnain, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sufiyan Muqeem, Tayyab Tahir, Usman Khan (wk).

Tests: Shan Masood (Captain), Saud Shakeel (vice-capt), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Babar Azam, Haseebullah (wk), Kamran Ghulam, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Naseem Shah, Noman Ali, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha.

The 25-year-old Pakistan left-arm spinner Sufiyan Muqeem created a new history in Pakistan cricket as they thrashed Zimbabwe in the second T20I to secure the away three-match T20I series by leading it 2-0 with one to go. 

After Zimbabwe captain Sikandar Raza chose to field first, they were bundled out for their lowest T20I total of 57 runs. Pakistan openers comfortably chased the target without losing any wickets in 5.3 overs. 

Zimbabwe: 57 all out

Zimbabwe openers Brian Bennett and Tadiwanashe Marumani started the T20I match strongly by scoring 37/0 in four overs. However, once that opening partnership was broken, they experienced a complete batting collapse. Zimbabwe lost their ten wickets by only adding 20 runs. Only the openers Bennett (21) and Marumani (16) reached the double-digit marks in that innings.

The 57 all out was the new record for Zimbabwe in the lowest completed T20I total. Their previous lowest T20I total was 82 all out against Sri Lanka in Colombo (RPS) on January 18, 2024. 

See Also: Haris Rauf creates new T20I record for Pakistan

Sufiyan Muqeem records best T20I bowling figures for Pakistan

All the Pakistan bowlers performed strongly. Apart from Jahandad Khan, who delivered only one over, all other Pakistan bowlers picked up at least one wicket. While Abbas Afridi recorded 2-1-2-2, Sufiyan Muqeem, who was playing his seventh T20I match, recorded his first T20 fifer and ended the innings with the bowling figures of 2.4-0-3-5. 

Muqeem recorded the best T20I bowling figures by a Pakistan bowler. Umar Gul previously held the record for the best bowling figures for Pakistan with the bowling figures of 3-0-6-5 against New Zealand in 2009 during the ICC World T20 2009. 

New Zealand won by 10 wickets

Pakistan openers Saim Ayub (36.*) and Omair Yousuf (22*) had no hiccups as they chased the target in just 5.3 overs. It was Pakistan's third 10-wicket win in their T20I history after their 2021 Dubai win against India and the 2022 Karachi win against England. Meanwhile, as Pakistan won the T20I with 87 balls remaining, it was the fastest T20I chase for Pakistan by balls remaining in the second innings. Their previous record in this list was winning the 2024 Rawalpindi T20I against New Zealand with 47 balls remaining. 

While Pakistan have taken a 1-0 lead in the three-match away T20I series against Zimbabwe, Pakistan right-arm fast bowler Haris Rauf created a new history for his nation.

After Pakistan scored 165/4 in 20 overs after winning the toss, Zimbabwe were all out for only 108 runs in 15.3 overs, as the visitors won the match by 57 runs. Pakistan bowlers dominated in the second innings, especially after the powerplay. 

Haris Rauf finished the match with the bowling figures of 3-0-17-2. After the fast bowler dismissed Ryan Burl (3) in his second over, Rauf bowled Blessing Muzarabani for a golden duck in his third over. 

See Also: Pakistan opener Shahzaib Khan creates history in the ACC U19 Asia Cup

Haris Rauf: Leading T20I wicket-taker from Pakistan

While his first wicket of the match was Rauf’s 108th T20I wicket, he surpassed the leg-spinner Shadab Khan (107 wickets) and became the leading T20I wicket-taker for Pakistan. They are the only two bowlers from Pakistan to collect 100+ T20I wickets. Rauf finished the match with 109 T20I wickets in 76 matches. 

With his 109 T20I wickets, Rauf is now the fifth-leading T20I wicket-taker by an Asian bowler and the second-most T20I wicket-taker by an Asian pacer (after the Bangladesh left-arm pacer Mustafizur Rahman with 132 wickets). Also, Rauf is the fifth most T20I wicket-taker as a pacer and the 14th most overall T20I wicket-taker. 

Pak spinners dominated after teamwork in batting

During Zimbabwe’s unsuccessful chasing, Pakistan spinners Abrar Ahmed (3/28) and Sufiyan Muqeem (3/20) took three wickets each. Among the Zimbabwe batters, only the opener Tadiwanashe Marumani (33) and captain Sikandar Raza (39) reached the double-digit scores. 

Earlier, in the first batting, all the top-order Pakistan batters got some starts but failed to score big runs. While the opener Saim Ayub scored 24 runs off 18 balls (two fours and one six), Usman Khan scored 39 off 30 balls (two fours and two sixes). From 100/4 in 14.2 overs, Tayyad Tahir and Irfan Khan had a 65-run partnership for the unbroken fifth wicket. While Tahir was not out for 39 not out off 25 balls (four fours and one six), Irfan scored 27 not out off 15 balls (three fours).

Among the Chevrons, skipper Sikandar Raza (1/14), Richard Ngarava (1/41), Wellington Masakadza (1/23), and Ryan Burl (1/27) picked up one wicket each.

While Pakistan has the hosting rights for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has tried hard to host the entire tournament in Pakistan. However, due to the strong objection from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), the PCB is reportedly ready to change the ICC CT 2025 venues under some conditions. 

PCB is desperate to host the ICC Champions Trophy 2025

While the ICC Champions Trophy is set to return in 2025, the PCB is desperate to host the entire tournament in Pakistan between February and March 2025. It is the first ICC tournament for Pakistan since hosting the ICC Cricket World Cup 1996. The PCB has selected Karachi, Lahore, and Rawalpindi as the venues for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.

See Also: Pakistan opener Shahzaib Khan creates history in the ACC U19 Asia Cup

According to the PCB and media reports, while all the remaining six boards are ready to play in Pakistan in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, the BCCI has refused to travel to Pakistan for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. The PCB is desperate to welcome the Indian cricket team to Pakistan, but the BCCI has shown security reasons for not traveling to Pakistan.

Last Friday (November 29), the International Cricket Council (ICC) scheduled a virtual board meeting to decide on hosting the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. While the ICC has reportedly brought the hybrid hosting model to the table, some of the PCB members have reportedly objected to the hybrid model. 

The conditions

While the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 hosting decision is likely to be finalised this weekend, some news reports are claiming that the PCB has finally accepted the hybrid model to host the upcoming Champions Trophy 2025 under some conditions.

Some of the reported conditions are as follows:

• An increase in the revenue from the ICC. 
• While the hybrid model will take away the final from Pakistan, the PCB wants Lahore to be a backup option for the Champions Trophy final in case India fail to qualify for the final.
• In the future, Pakistan won’t travel to India for any tournament. If India get the hosting rights, the BCCI also has to bring up the hybrid hosting model for Pakistan. 

If the ICC accepts the PCB’s conditions, the PCB is reportedly open to hosting the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 in the hybrid model. 

After suffering a shocking defeat in the rain-shortened three-match ODI series opener against the hosts Zimbabwe, Pakistan made a solid comeback with a thrashing 10-wicket victory to level the series before the last game of the series.

After the hosts chose to bat first in the second ODI, they were bundled out for only 145 runs. In reply, Pakistan openers this time batted strongly to reach the target in 18.2 overs without losing a wicket. While the debutant Pakistan spinner Abrar Ahmed shined with the ball, opener Saim Ayub recorded a smashing ODI century in that low chase. 

In the Zimbabwe batting line-up, only Dion Myers (33) and Sean Williams (31) reached the 20-run mark. Pakistan spinners bagged nine wickets in that innings, where the debutant leg-spinner Abrar Ahmed had the bowling figures of 8-2-33-4, and the off-spinner Salman Agha got three wickets (7-0-26-3). Saim Ayub (1/16) and Faisal Akram (1/19) got one wicket each, while the opener Tadiwanashe Marumani was run out. 

SEE ALSO: Dasun Shanaka concedes a galloping 30 runs in 3 balls in Abu Dhabi T10

In reply, the 22-year-old Pakistan opener Saim Ayub hit his first ODI hundred in his fifth ODI by smashing a 53-ball century. After completing his 50 runs in 32 balls, the left-handed opening batter powerfully completed his century. While Ayub scored 113 not out off 62 balls with the help of 17 fours and three sixes, his opening partner Abdullah Shafique scored 32 not out off 48 balls.

Debutant Abrar Ahmed claimed a four-wicket haul

• Abrar Ahmed recorded the fifth-best bowling figures by an ODI debutant spinner outside the home. 
• Abrar recorded the third-best bowling figures by a Pakistan ODI debutant. 

Best bowling figures by a Pakistan ODI debutant

Pakistan spinners took nine wickets

• It was the fourth time when Pakistan spinners picked up at least nine wickets in an ODI innings. Out of these four times, Pakistan spinners recorded three times against Zimbabwe, including recording all ten wickets in an innings. 

Saim Ayub recorded one of the fastest ODI centuries

• With his 53-ball century, the opener Saim Ayub recorded the joint third-fastest ODI century by a Pakistan batter. 

Pakistan batters with fastest ODI centuries

Pakistan won by 10 wickets

• It was the fifth time Pakistan won by 10 wickets in an ODI match. However, Zimbabwe became the first team to lose against Pakistan by 10 wickets twice. 

Pakistan ODI record: Winning by 10 wickets

Aaqib Javed has been appointed as the limited-overs head coach of the Pakistan men’s national cricket team. The 52-year-old has been appointed to the white-ball coaching role on an interim basis. He will continue this role till the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. 

Aaqib Javed's responsibilities 

Javed will start his interim coaching journey for the Pakistan team after the end of the Australia tour. It means he will serve as the head coach during Pakistan's tour of Zimbabwe and South Africa. While Pakistan will play six white-ball matches in Zimbabwe, they will also play another six limited-overs matches in South Africa before Jason Gillespie takes charge of the Pakistan Test team to play a two-match Test series against South Africa. 

SEE ALSO: PCB opens up on head coach Jason Gillespie's removal news

Before the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, Pakistan will also play a two-match home Test series against West Indies and a short ODI tri-series with New Zealand and South Africa. 

Pakistan will host the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 in February 2025. 

While he is ready for the interim coaching role, Javed will also continue his role as a senior member of the Pakistan men’s national selection committee.

Aaqib Javed's international career

In his international career between 1988 and 1998, the right-arm fast-medium bowler picked up 54 wickets in 22 Tests and 182 wickets in 163 ODIs.

At the age of 19 years and 81 days, Javed recorded an ODI hat-trick against India in Sharjah during the Wills Trophy final in October 1991. He still holds the record for the youngest player to record an ODI hat-trick. In that same ODI, Javed ended with the bowling figures of 10-1-37-7. While he was the second bowler in ODI history to claim a seven-wicket haul (after the Caribbean Winston Davis in 1983), he recorded then the best bowling figures in ODI history. 

After finishing playing career

Javed was the head coach of the National Cricket Academy in Lahore. He was also the head coach of the Pakistan U19 cricket team during their successful journey in the ICC U19 Cricket World Cup 2004, where they won their first U19 WC trophy. 

While Javed worked for the development of the Afghanistan national cricket team, he also worked as the bowling coach for the Pakistan men’s national cricket team. He was also the bowling and head coach of the United Arab Emirates men’s team.  

For the Pakistan Super League team Lahore Qalandars, Javed was involved as the director of cricket operations, bowling consultant, and head coach. 

For a short period, Javed also worked this year with the Sri Lankan men’s national cricket team as the fast bowling coach. 

Former Australian star pacer Jason Gillespie is likely to be removed from the head coach of the Pakistan national cricket team, as former Pakistan pacer and 1992 World Cup winner is set to replace Gillespie.

Jason Gillespie was working as the Test head coach and former South African cricketer Gary Kirsten was the white-ball head coach for the Pakistan men’s team.

Jason Gillespie took additional responsibilities after Gary Kirsten's resign

Recently, Kirsten stepped down from the head coach role of Pakistan’s limited-overs sides. In his absence, the Test head coach Gillespie was working with the white-ball teams on an interim basis. 

After Pakistan dramatically won the home Test series against England by 2-1, despite losing the first Test, they started the ongoing Australia tour with a historic ODI series win (2-1) once again after losing the series opener. 

However, Pakistan have lost the three-match T20I series as they are already down to 2-0 before the last game of the series. 

According to the latest ESPNcricinfo report, Gillespie is likely to be released from all the head coach duties for Pakistan. While Australia vs Pakistan's last T20I match has been scheduled for Monday (November 18) at Hobart, Gillespie’s tenure can officially end on Monday.

The reason for Gillespie's step down

According to an ESPNcricinfo report, as Kirsten left the Pakistan team, the Test coach Gilespie was asked to take the additional white-ball roles without changing the present contract. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) was expected to see Gillespie as the all-format head coach till the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, which Pakistan will host in February 2025.

However, Gillespie refused to accept the additional role under the present contract. As both parties have different views, the PCB is set to release Gillespie, as the board wants an all-format head coach.

Aaqib Javed is set to replace Gillespie

The 52-year-old Aaqib Javed is likely to take the all-format head coach role of the Pakistan men’s cricket team. He played 22 Tests and 163 ODIs, where the right-arm fast-medium bowler took 54 and 182 wickets, respectively. 

Javed was one of the key members of the Pakistan team that won the ODI World Cup 1992. He took 11 wickets in 10 games of that tournament. In the final against England, where Pakistan won by 22 runs, Javed was the best economical bowler for Pakistan with the bowling figures of 10-2-27-2.    

Hosts Australia have taken a 1-0 lead in the three-match T20I series against Pakistan after winning the rain-curtailed Brisbane T20I on Thursday (November 14). However, there was a controversy, and some cricket fans were confused and surprised by the incident. 

The series-opener Brisbane T20I was shrunk to a 7-over contest. Australia scored 93/4, thanks to the powerful batting from Glenn Maxwell (43 off 19 balls) and Marcus Stoinis (21 not out off 7 balls). 

In reply, Pakistan scored 64/9 in seven overs, where Xavier Bartlett (3/13) and Nathan Ellis (3/9) took three wickets each, while Adam Zampa (2/11) and Spencer Johnson (1/29) shared the other three wickets.

The Controversy

In the first innings, Pakistan used four bowlers. After Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf completed their two-over quotas, Naseem Shah delivered the final over of the innings, which was his second over of the match. As Abbas Afridi bowled one over (2/9), Pakistan used four bowlers in the game.

Some cricket fans raised questions in that innings as Pakistan didn’t use the five bowlers in the innings. Even before the toss, the broadcasters also clarified that two bowlers can deliver a maximum of two overs each, and three other bowlers can deliver one over each. 

It will be a seven-over game 2 over powerplay, 2 bowlers can bowl two overs and three can bowl one#PAKvAUS pic.twitter.com/6LOveDiSQD

— PTV Sports (@PTVSp0rts) November 14, 2024

Play will start at 3:20 PM (Pakistan Time), with 7 overs per side.

2 bowlers can bowl 2 overs each, and the other 3 bowlers will bowl an over each.#AUSvPAK | #PAKvsAUS | #PakistanCricket | #Cricket pic.twitter.com/jjffkh5pxt

— PakPassion.net (@PakPassion) November 14, 2024

In fact, if we look at the second innings of the match, Australia also used the same tactics as Johnson, Bartlett, and Ellis bowled two overs each before Zampa delivered the last over. 

Usually, in limited-over matches, a team must use five bowlers (excluding a team’s innings was interrupted and not possible to restart their innings). In the shortened limited-over matches, the total overs have been divided between five bowlers, and some bowlers can deliver one additional over to make up the balance in the case of total overs not being divisible by five.

Special rule

However, T20I cricket has a special rule to allow each team to complete the innings with less than five bowlers in special cases.  

The ICC playing condition 13.9.4 claims, “for innings of rescheduled length of between 5 and 9 overs, no bowler may bowl more than two overs.” In this special condition, there is no requirement to use at least five bowlers if the innings are rescheduled between 5 and 9 overs.

So, the umpires and both the teams didn’t make any mistakes. However, the broadcasters made mistakes that brought more confusion to the cricket fans. 

In fact, it wasn't the first time we experienced it. The 2017 Thiruvananthapuram T20I between India and New Zealand also experienced a similar incident, where the Blackcaps used four bowlers, and each bowled two overs in the 8-over innings. 

While Pakistan batter Babar Azam has maintained the top position in the ODI batting rankings, a Pakistan pacer has returned to the top in the ODI bowling rankings. 

Recently, Pakistan shined with a historic ODI series win against the hosts Australia, as the visitors won the three-match ODI series by 2-1 after losing the series opener. 

ODI bowling rankings: Shaheen Shah Afridi shines along with Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah

While the left-arm fast bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi finished the away ODI series in Australia with eight wickets after three matches, he climbed to the top place of the ODI bowling rankings. 

Other Pakistan fast bowlers Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah both moved up to 14 positions in the ODI bowling rankings, as Rauf is in the 13th place and Shah is in his career-best 55th position. Rauf won the Player of the Series award in the ODI series in Australia after picking up 10 wickets and finishing the series as the leading wicket-taker. Meanwhile, Shah took five wickets in the series.

In the ODI bowling rankings, while the Afghan leg-spinner Rashid Khan has kept his second-place position, South African Keshav Maharaja and the Indian Kuldeep Yadav are in the third and fourth places, respectively. 

While Babar Azam finished the ODI series as the third leading run-scorer with 37, 15 not out, and 28 not out, the right-handed Pakistan batter remained on top of the ODI batting rankings. Indian batters Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, and Virat Kohli are in the second, third, and fourth places, respectively. 

Former Afghanistan captain Mohammad Nabi, who won the Player of the Series award against Bangladesh in the ODI series, has continued his top place in the ODI all-rounder rankings. Afghanistan cricketers Rashid Khan and Azmatullah Omarzai have climbed third and ninth places, respectively. Bangladesh cricketer Mehidy Hasan Miraz is in fourth place.

SEE ALSO: Mohammad Nabi set to retire from ODIs after Champions Trophy 2025

T20I bowling and batting rankings

English spinner Adil Rashid is staying in the top place of the T20I bowling rankings, while the Sri Lankan star spinner Wanindu Hasaranga is in second place after jumping four spots. Caribbean spinner Akeal Hosein and Indian leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi have climbed to third and seventh positions, respectively. 

While the Australian cricketer Travis Head is on top of the T20I batting rankings, the English cricketers Phil Salt and Jos Buttler and the Caribbean star Nicholas Pooran have climbed to second, sixth, and 10th places, respectively. 

Sanju Samson, who recently became the first Indian cricketer to record T20I centuries in back-to-back innings, has improved 27 ranks by reaching 39th position in the T20I batting rankings. 

Pakistan created a new history by winning the three-match ODI series against the hosts Australia after winning the last game of the series by eight wickets. 

Pakistan pacers dominated in the entire ODI series. In the third or series-decider ODI match at Perth, Pakistan captain Mohammad Rizwan chose to field first after winning the toss. Australia saw five changes in the playing XI, and Josh Inglis made his captaincy debut in international cricket. All the players, excluding only Inglis, related to the first Test match against India have been rested for the ODI series decider. 

SEE ALSO: Australian squad announced for Perth Test with two potential Test debutants

After bowling out Australia for only 140 runs, Pakistan chased the target in 26.5 overs after losing only two wickets. With this victory, Pakistan won the ODI series by 2-1. 

Among the top seven Australian batters, only the opener Matthew Short (22) and Aaron Hardie (12) reached the double-digit scores in the innings. 

Cooper Connolly was retired hurt

Cooper Connolly was retired hurt after scoring seven runs. On the second ball of the 17th over in the first innings, Connolly received a blow on his left hand from Mohammad Hasnain’s delivery. He went for a pull, but the ball hit his glove. He faced the next delivery before realising his injury. 

The 21-year-old cricketer Connolly has been ruled out from the upcoming home T20I series against Pakistan due to a fractured left hand. The scan report found a fracture to the fourth metacarpal of his left hand. His replacement for the upcoming T20I series will be announced soon. 

Coming back to the game, Australia were struggling at 88/6. Sean Abbott (30), Adam Zampa (13), and Spencer Johnson (12) added some runs to take the scoreboard close to 150 runs. 

All Pakistan pacers took wickets

Pakistan bowlers conceded 22 extras, including 16 wides, but those didn’t affect the visitors. While Shaheen Shah Afridi (3/32) and Naseem Shah (3/54) bagged three wickets each, Mohammad Hasnain (1/24) and Harsi Rauf (2/24) also picked up wickets. 

Pakistan batters chased comfortably

In reply, all the top Pakistan batters provided valuable contributions to chase the target comfortably. Openers Saim Ayub (42) and Abdullah Shafique (37) had an 84-run partnership for the first wicket, while Babar Azam (28*) and Mohammad Rizwan (30*) easily finished the game after both openers were dismissed in the same over. 

Among the Aussie bowlers, only Lance Morris (2/24) managed to pick up wickets. 

While Harris Rauf won the Player of the Match award, he also won the Players of the Series award after finishing the series as the leading wicket-taker (10 wickets).  

Pakistan created history as the first Asian team

It was Pakistan’s second ODI bilateral series victory in Australia. Previously, they recorded it in the 2002 tour when they won the three-match ODI series by 2-1. 

Pakistan became the first Asian team to win an ODI bilateral series more than once in Australia. 

Meanwhile, Pakistan also became the second visiting team in Australia to record twice winning an ODI bilateral series with more than one match. South Africa is the other team in this record as they won the 2009 and 2018 ODI series in Australia tours.