Pakistan star batter Babar Azam and pace bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi are on the verge of achieving major milestones in the series-opener of the T20I series against South Africa, scheduled later today.
Babar is currently holding the second position on the highest run-scorers list in T20I cricket, having accumulated 4,192 runs across 126 matches.
He needs only 39 runs to overtake India’s Rohit Sharma, who reigns at the top with 4,231 runs achieved in 159 matches.
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Following closely behind Babar is Virat Kohli, who has announced his retirement from T20I cricket alongside Rohit after India’s victory in the ICC T20 World Cup 2024. Kohli occupies the third spot in the rankings, having amassed 4,188 runs across 125 matches.
On the other hand, Shaheen Afridi is just three wickets shy of becoming the third Pakistani bowler to reach the coveted 100-wicket mark in T20Is. Overall, he would be the 19th bowler globally and the eighth fast bowler to reach this feat.
It’s worth noting that after the first T20I match in Durban today, the action will shift to Centurion for the second T20I, which is scheduled for December 13. The series will culminate with the final T20I in Johannesburg on December 14.
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After wrapping up the T20I series, Pakistan and South Africa will play a three-match ODI series. The opening ODI will take place on December 17 in Paarl, while the second and third ODIs will be played in Cape Town and Johannesburg on December 19 and 22 respectively.
Pakistan and South Africa will then engage in a two-match Test series, which will kick off in Centurion on December 26, meanwhile, the second Test will start from January 3 in Cape Town.
Squads of Pakistan and South Africa for T20I series
Pakistan: Mohammad Rizwan (c)(wk), Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Haris Rauf, Jahandad Khan, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Hasnain, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Omair Bin Yousuf, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sufyan Moqim, Tayyab Tahir and Usman Khan (wk)
South Africa: Heinrich Klaasen (c), Ottneil Baartman, Matthew Breetzke, Donovan Ferreira, Reeza Hendricks, Patrick Kruger, George Linde, Kwena Maphaka, David Miller, Anrich Nortje, Nqaba Peter, Ryan Rickelton, Tabraiz Shamsi, Andile Simelane, and Rassie van der Dussen.