Pakistan's captain, Salman Ali Agha, expressed his satisfaction over the team's performance in the recently concluded T20 series against Zimbabwe, which the visiting side won 2-1.
Speaking at a post-series conference, Salman said he takes a lot of pride in how the team played in the series, especially the young players. "It has been outstanding - the way youngsters put on a show and I have been very proud of them," he said.
Although he was content with his role as a bowler and captain, Salman added that he would have liked to score more runs. "I would like to score more runs but I'm happy contributing with my bowling and also captaincy" he said.
Looking ahead, Salman acknowledged that the upcoming tour of South Africa will be very challenging. "It will be a long tour against South Africa, but we will go there with confidence and try to win there as well," he added.
He also spoke highly of two standout players, Saim Ayub and Sufyan Muqeem, and said both had a bright future. "All the youngsters were impressive. Here I must mention Saim and Sufyan who stood out. Both have a bright future ahead and will serve Pakistan for a long time" Agha predicted.
Salman also thanked the Zimbabwean crowd for their support throughout the series. "I want to thank the Zimbabwe crowd – we enjoyed every single game and thank you for your support and contribution and see you soon."
Pak squad off to South Africa for T20 series
BULAWAYO: The Pakistan T20I squad departed for South Africa on Friday for the upcoming white and red-ball series, scheduled to kick off from December 10.
Salman Ali Agha, Irfan Khan Niazi, Haris Rauf, Saim Ayub, Abrar Ahmed, Mohammad Hasnain, Usman Khan, Abbas Afridi, Jahandad Khan, Sufyan Muqeem, Tayyab Tahir, and Omair Bin Yousuf are travelling to Durban.
White-ball skipper Mohammad Rizwan who was not part of Pakistan's squad for the T20I series against Zimbabwe, will join the team in Durban along with Babar Azam and Shaheen Shah Afridi.
Pacer Shaheen Afridi will feature only in the white-ball matches, while Mohammad Abbas has replaced him in the red-ball format. His inclusion aims to ensure peak fitness for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.
Additionally, Naseem Shah rejoins the squad for both Tests and ODIs after missing the recent series against England and Zimbabwe.
The ODI and Test squads will depart on December 13, with red-ball coach Jason Gillespie set to join the team in Johannesburg ahead of the Test series.
The forthcoming series, comprising two Tests, three ODIs, and three T20Is, will take place from December 10 to January 7.
