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New Zealand will tour Pakistan in September this year after 18 years where they will play 3 ODIs in Rawalpindi and 5 T20 internationals in Lahore. The series will be a lead-up to the ICC T20 World Cup 2021 that will start on October 17. Black Caps will start their tour with 3 One Day Internationals on September 17’19 and 21 at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.
3 ODIs will be followed by 5 T20 Internationals that are set to be played in Gadafi Stadium Lahore. It will be the start of a long and exciting home season for Pakistan as New Zealand’s tour will be followed by a tour of England’s men and women in October, West Indies’ men in December, and Australia in February-March next year. PCB had to open a new window of PSL7 to make Australia’s tour to Pakistan possible.
New Zealand will come back to Pakistan again next year to play red-ball matches.
Importance of the Series
The series is very important as Black are going to be hosted by the Asian nation after 18 years as New Zealand last time visited Pakistan in 2003. Secondly, it’s going to be the first drop of rain for Pakistan as plenty of other strong cricket-playing nations like Australia, West Indies, and England will also tour Pakistan if the series remains successful. It will enable Pakistan to become a candidate for future ICC tournaments.
The ODIs are part of World Cup 2023 Qualification as the top 8 sides will directly qualify for the World Cup while Pakistan will aim for the 3rd spot on the T20I ranking in Lahore. Babar Azam hasn’t had a lot of success on his last couple of tours so this home series against New Zealand would be a big moment for him to make headlines with the team’s success.
What they said
“Series against a top-ranked side like New Zealand will be a perfect start to a mouth-watering and highly-exciting home season of red and white-ball cricket. The 2019 World Cup finalists, who are also the World Test champions and ranked third in T20Is, will draw tremendous attraction and interest from the local fans, and will reinforce Pakistan’s status as a safe and secure country.”
Pakistan Cricket Board’s Chief Executive Wasim talked to the media and expressed his pleasure on New Zealand’s tour of Pakistan, “I am pleased New Zealand Cricket has accepted our offer to play two additional Twenty20 Internationals. These will not only provide extra games to both the countries as part of their ICC Men’s T20 World Cup preparations but will also allow New Zealand players to spend extra days in Pakistan, familiarise themselves with our culture, and enjoy our hospitality.
With leading cricket playing countries resuming their tours to Pakistan in 2019, I remain confident and optimistic that the 2021-22 season starting with the series against New Zealand will prove to be a catalyst in rejuvenating our talented youngsters while attracting new fans to the game that has the most passionate following in the country.”
“We’re very much looking forward to returning to Pakistan for the start of their home international season.”
New Zealand Cricket’s Chief Executive David White said, “New Zealand was the first country outside India to tour Pakistan and we share a close relationship with the PCB.
It’s great that, after such a difficult time for Pakistan, international cricket is again being played in the country.”
Series schedule
- 11 Sep – Arrival in Islamabad
- 12-14 Sep – Room isolation
- 15-16 Sep – Training/practice/intra-squad match
- 17 Sep – 1st ODI, Rawalpindi
- 19 Sep – 2nd ODI, Rawalpindi
- 21 Sep – 3rd ODI, Rawalpindi
- 25 Sep – 1st T20I, Lahore
- 26 Sep – 2nd T20I, Lahore
- 29 Sep – 3rd T20I, Lahore
- 1 Oct – 4th T20I, Lahore
- 3 Oct – 5th T20I, Lahore
Also Read about: Kashmir Premier League 2021: Complete Schedule
