Pakistan’s tour of South Africa begins on 26th of December with three Test matches, followed by five One day Internationals, and finally concluding with three T20Is.
As this is going to be quite a long tour, both the teams will stand a test of time. Especially with the 2019 World Cup in sight, both the teams would try and find the right team combinations.
Pakistan's recent ventures against New Zealand in Dubai were quite fruitful where they battered the Kiwis 3-0 in T20s and ended the ODI series of 1-1. However, they found themselves on the receiving end as they lost the Tests, 1-2 to New Zealand.
On the other hand, the South African team, which hasn't played any international cricket in over a month, will host Pakistan with a rather positive outlook. They would still be savoring their sweet victory against Australia as they face Pakistan in the Boxing Day Test.
Muhammad Amir, who was dropped for the Australia and New Zealand series, has been called back into the 16-man Test squad to face South Africa. The ace pacer is expected to start on the Boxing Day Test. Mohammad Rizwan has also been included as a backup keeper, while Shan Masood comes in place of Mohammad Hafeez, who retired after the last match against New Zealand.
Duanne Olivier is also set to make a comeback for South Africa after more than a year. Olivier comes in as a replacement to the injured Lungi Ngidi. Batsman Zubayr Hamza is also expected to make his debut in Tests against Pakistan. The 23-year-old comes with quite a reputation, especially with an exceptional first-class average of 48.95.
With the World Cup right around the corner, both the teams would be eager to gain some momentum for themselves. Especially they would try and land the perfect combination before they take on the World this summer.
The schedule, along with the timings and venue, are given below.
You can download the PDF schedule for South Africa vs Pakistan series here.
Match #1 South Africa vs Pakistan, 1st test
Date: 26-30 Dec 2018
Venue: SuperSport Park, Centurion
Time: 1:30 pm
Match #2 South Africa vs Pakistan, 2nd test
Date: 03-07 Jan 2019
Venue: Newlands, Capetown
Time: 2:00 pm
Match #3 South Africa vs Pakistan, 3rd test
Date: 11-15 Jan 2019
Venue: The Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg
Time: 1:30 pm
Match #4 South Africa vs Pakistan, 1st ODI
Date: 19 Jan 2019
Venue: St George's Park, Port Elizabeth
Time: 4:30 pm
Match #5 South Africa vs Pakistan, 2nd ODI
Date: 22 Jan 2019
Venue: Kingsmead, Durban
Time: 4:30 pm
Match #6 South Africa vs Pakistan, 3rd ODI
Date: 25 Jan 2019
Venue: SuperSport Park, Centurion
Time: 4:30 pm
Match #7 South Africa vs Pakistan, 4th ODI
Date: 27 Jan 2019
Venue: The Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg
Time: 1:30 pm
Match #8 South Africa vs Pakistan, 5th ODI
Date: 30 Jan 2019
Venue: Newlands, Capetown
Time: 4:30 pm
Match #9 South Africa vs Pakistan, 1st T20I
Date: 01 Feb 2019
Venue: Newlands, Capetown
Time: 9:30 pm
Match #10 South Africa vs Pakistan, 2nd T20I
Date: 03 Feb 2019
Venue: The Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg
Time: 6:00 pm
Match #11 South Africa vs Pakistan, 3rd T20I
Date: 06 Feb 2019
Venue: SuperSport Park, Centurion
Time: 9:30 pm
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