The Pakistan cricket crew made their way to Canberra via Sydney on Friday, getting set for the upcoming Australian PM XI Test. The match is set to kick off from December 6-9 at Manuka Oval.
The squad of 18 players and a 17-member management team, as announced by the Pakistan cricket authorities, embarked on their journey to Australia at 3 am on Thursday from Lahore airport, making a stopover in Dubai for a quick rest before boarding their flight to Sydney.
See Australia announces PM XI squad for Pakistan match
After a lengthy journey of more than 24 hours, the team finally reached their destination in Sydney at 7 am (PST) on Friday. Led by the newly appointed captain Shan Masood, the team plans to take a well-deserved break on Friday to recover from the exhaustive trip.
It’s important to note that this marks Pakistan’s first Test tour to Australia since 2019, a series where they faced a tough 2-0 defeat under Azhar Ali’s leadership, losing both games by an innings. Additionally, Pakistan has never clinched a Test series victory in Australia throughout their cricket history.
Meanwhile, Australia is yet to reveal their squad for the upcoming three-match Test series. However, according to Australian media reports, selectors are scheduled to convene this week for finalizing the team.
Test skipper Pat Cummins mentioned during an event at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) that the selection process would follow this week’s Sheffield Shield games.
Pakistan squad for the Australia Tests
- Shan Masood (captain)
- Aamir Jamal
- Abdullah Shafique
- Abrar Ahmed
- Babar Azam
- Faheem Ashraf
- Hasan Ali
- Imam-ul-Haq
- Khurram Shahzad
- Mir Hamza
- Mohammad Rizwan (wk)
- Mohammad Wasim Jnr
- Noman Ali
- Saim Ayub
- Salman Ali Agha
- Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk)
- Saud Shakeel
- Shaheen Shah Afridi
Schedule for Australia’s tour includes a four-day match between PM’s XI and Pakistan at Manuka Oval in Canberra from December 6-9, followed by the Test matches at Perth Stadium, Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), and Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) in December and January.
