Pakistan will face arch-rivals India at the Newlands in Cape Town on Sunday in their opening match of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup.
Bismah Maroof will be leading the side in the event for the second time, after captaining the side in the previous edition held in Australia in 2020. She along with opening batter Javeria Khan will be featuring in their eighth edition of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup.
Meanwhile, veteran all-rounder Nida Dar was confident about putting up a good show during the mega event, while speaking to PCB Digital.
“The preparations have been good. We had a good series against Australia despite not winning matches over there, but still a lot to learn from the series which will help us do well in the World Cup,” Nida said.
“We are placed in a competitive group where we have sides like England, India, Ireland and West Indies. We will take one game at a time and look forward to qualifying for the semi-finals.
“We have a good combination of young and experienced players in our squad. The young players are quick learners and are very enthusiastic. They bring energy in the squad, which ultimately help the senior players to contribute in team’s win.”
She also spoke about the highly-anticipated clash against neighbours India.
“India-Pakistan contest is such that it does not require any Sunday, fans will be there to witness the match any day provided the two sides are playing against each other. It is all about controlling the nerves, it is also exciting to play such matches as people watch you play,” she said.
The Green Shirts have only won three out of 13 T20I matches against India over the course of their history.
Pakistan squad
Bismah Maroof (c), Aimen Anwar, Aliya Riaz, Ayesha Naseem, Fatima Sana, Javeria Khan, Muneeba Ali (wk), Nashra Sandhu, Nida Dar, Omaima Sohail, Sadaf Shamas, Sadia Iqbal, Sidra Amin, Sidra Nawaz (wk) and Tuba Hassan
Reserves: Ghulam Fatima and Kainat Imtiaz
Player Support staff: Ayesha Ashhar (team manager), Saleem Jaffer (bowling coach and interim head coach), Taufiq Umar (batting coach), Mauhtashim Rashid (fielding coach), Syed Nazir Ahmed (media and digital content manager), Yasir Malik (strength and conditioning coach), Dr Hafiz Salman Asif (team doctor), Muhammad Zubair Ahmad (analyst), and Rifat Gill (physiotherapist).
Pakistan fixtures
12 February v India at Newlands, Cape Town, 1800 PKT
15 February v Ireland at Newlands, Cape Town, 2200 PKT
19 February v West Indies at Boland Park, Paarl, 1800 PKT
21 February v England at Newlands, Cape Town, 1800 PKT