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2021 has come to an end and Pakistan can look back and feel they did well. Almost. They were brilliant across both Test and T20Is but the lack of ODIs didn’t really make a cut for them. There have been some memorable moments, but all will be put behind as the new year will see new challenges ahead of Babar Azam and his men. Here’s what we can expect from Pakistan Cricket in 2022.
The biggest awaited series will be when three of the four SENA countries travel the country. New Zealand and England were supposed to come in September and October respectively, but a last-minute pack-up by the kiwis saw the buildup to bring international cricket fell like a pack of cards.
Questions raised whether the scheduled Australia tour of Pakistan will take place and the remaining series such as the PSL. But all were slowly sorted out, giving the PAK fans a lot to wait for.
In addition, there will be three mega ICC events taking place, one each for Men, Women, and the Youth teams. As for the series on the Women and Youth teams, not much has been disclosed. But for the Men, following the confirmations as well as the ICC Future Tour Program, let’s see who PAK will play and where.
Pakistan Cricket: Men’s Series
Pakistan Super League 2022
The seventh edition of PSL will begin in the month of January for the first time. Usually, it takes around February, but due to the Australia series schedule, the PSL was pushed back a month.
PSL will begin on January 27th to February 28th. The tournament will be taken in two legs; the first half in Karachi while the rest in Lahore. Karachi will host 15 matches while Lahore will host 19, including the final. Defending Champions Multan Sultans will start the tournament against Karachi Kings.
For the full list of PSL squads, you can read it here:
All Teams Finalized Players for PSL 7
Australia Tour of PAK
One of the three SENA countries to tour the country, the Australia series was put in danger following New Zealand’s last-minute leave. But the officials and former cricketers once again went through all the security protocols and safety of Pakistan’s security forces to give the green light yet again.
Australia will play 3 World Test Championship matches, 3 ODI World Cup Super League Matches, and one T20Is. The first and second Test matches will be played in Karachi and Rawalpindi respectively. The rest of the tour will be played in Lahore.
The series will be played from March 3 to 5 April 2022.
New Zealand Tour of PAK
Perhaps the series will have more eyes on when New Zealand tour the country. After leaving the country due to “security threats” issues, questions raised again whether the WTC winners will tour Pakistan again. But just almost two weeks ago, PCB and NZC decided to reschedule the tour.
Much to the delight of the Pakistani fans, the kiwis will tour not once but twice in four months. The first tour will take from December 2022 for 2 WTC matches and 3 ODI WCSL matches before returning in April 2023 for 10 white-ball matches.
England Tour of PAK
England was highly criticized by their own former cricketers and even their Prime Minister John Borris expressed his disappointment when they did not tour Pakistan for just two T20I matches. It was a tour of just four days, with Michael Holding citing that they wouldn’t do this to India if it was their case.
Also read: Why exactly was the PAK v ENG Tour Called Off? People deserve to know
Their tour was also rescheduled later in 2022, likely to play again in September. They will play 3 WTC matches and 7 T20I matches. The T20I matches will act as the practice matches for the T20 World Cup, which will start on October 16.
PAK Tour of SL
According to the ICC FTP, the Men in Green is scheduled to travel to Sri Lanka for a series of 2 Test matches, also part of WTC, and 3 ODIs. However, nothing has been confirmed by either PCB or SLC.
The series is expected to take place between June and July.
Afghanistan Series
Babar’s men were supposed to play against Afghanistan in UAE for three ODIs and expectedly three T20Is. However, the series was postponed due to the Taliban Offensive.
Now, according to the FTP, Afghanistan is scheduled to tour PAK for 5 ODIs. The series is part of WCSL and it will likely take place somewhere between September.
West Indies Tour of PAK
The series was supposed to be concluded in December 2021 itself. But following the positive tests of Covid-19 in the West Indies camp, both boards agree to postpone the series. The three ODIs, part of WCSL, will take place somewhere between early July.
What is the World Cup Super League? You can read it in detail here.
Asia Cup 2022
The Men’s Asia Cup was supposed to take place in 2020. But as the world pandemic took over, the Asian multination event was postponed to 2021. However, it was again postponed, this time in 2022. Taking place in Sri Lanka, expectedly around August/ September, the tournament will be played in the T20 format to act as practice games for the 2022 T20 World Cup.
Asia Cup 2022 hosting rights were won by Pakistan. But with Sri Lanka not holding the event due to pandemics and PAK having recent issues with NZ and ENG tour cancellation, it was decided to give Sri Lanka the 2022 event and give PAK the 2023 event. This also gives PAK enough time to set things right for their home series.
ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 – Australia
The main event in Men’s 2022 cricket schedule, the eighth event of the Men’s T20 World Cup will take place from October 16 to November 13. Just like the previous edition, there will be 16 teams competing with two sections of the event; the “Qualifiers” and the “Super 12s.”
Babar Azam and his boys enjoyed a fruitful event in 2021 event, from beating their arch-rivals India for the first time to topping the group stage. They were defeated by the eventual winners Australia in the Semi-Finals.
Pakistan Cricket: Women’s Series
ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2022 – New Zealand
PAK-W will travel to New Zealand for the Women’s mega event, which was supposed to take place in 2021 but was postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
PAK-W played the Women’s World Cup qualifier last month, but it was canceled due to Covid-19 issues, and eventually, they qualified for the main event through the Women’s ODI rankings
Like the previous tournament in 2017, eight teams will play against each other once in the league stage with the top four teams qualifying for the Semi-Finals.
The 2022 Women’s World Cup will begin from March 4 till April 3, 2022. Pakistan will begin its campaign against arch-rivals India on March 6. You can find the full schedule here.
Pakistan Cricket: Youth Series
ICC U19 Cricket World Cup – West Indies
PAK U19 team has recently ended their Asia Cup campaign, losing to Sri Lanka in the Semi-Finals and ending at third place in otherwise what has been their excellent campaign.
Now, the young Green Team will travel to the West Indies for their mega event. They are drawn in Group C along with Afghanistan, Papua New Guinea, and Zimbabwe.
As always, Top two teams from each group will qualify for the Quarter-Finals, while the bottom two players will play the “plate” round to determine the final positions.
Read More: 2021 – The Year of Mohammad Rizwan in T20s
