LAHORE (Abdul Basit): Pakistan will face South Africa in a three-match women’s ODI series, commencing from Tuesday, September 16, 2025.
South Africa women’s cricket team are on their third tour of Pakistan in three years with the recent two acting as part of preparations for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024 and ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025, respectively. The ODIs will be staged at the Gaddafi Stadium Lahore (GSL) on September 16, 19 and 22, with the first ball of all matches to be bowled at 3.30pm PKT.
Pakistan’s 15-member squad will be captained by Fatima Sana, while Laura Wolvaardt will lead the visiting side. In the build-up to the series, Pakistan held a two-week pre-series camp in Lahore, which included practice sessions and scenario-based matches. The squad features one uncapped player, Eyman Fatima, who recently made her T20I debut against Ireland in Dublin in August.
The forthcoming series provides both sides with an opportunity to finalise preparations for the eight-team ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup, set to take place from 30 September to 2 November in India and Sri Lanka. Pakistan will play all their matches in Sri Lanka.
On head to head, in 28 ODI matches, South Africa had an upper hand against Pakistan, but the last time when both sides met, Pakistan had defeated South Africa by eight wickets in the ICC Women’s Championship 2022-25 series fixture at the National Bank Stadium in Karachi on September 14, 2023.
For Pakistan, in the current squad, in the batting department, Aliya Riaz has featured in 11 ODIs against South Africa, scoring 351 runs, which included three half-centuries. In the bowling unit, left-arm spinner Nashra Sundhu has played 12 matches, claiming 16 wickets at an economy rate of 3.91.
Fatima Sana, while talking to PCB Digital ahead of the ODI series, said: “A series like this is very beneficial for the team ahead of the World Cup. It gives the players a good opportunity to put into practice all the preparation they have done in the recent times. “Everyone knows Pakistan rely on their bowling attack, so this time our focus will be on getting more support from the batting unit as well. We worked a lot on batting during the camp.”
Laura Wolvaardt, while talking to PCB Digital, said: “This series is an important part of our preparations for the World Cup. The conditions will be similar to those at the World Cup, so it’s a great opportunity for us to get ready. “Pakistan are a good side with some quality batters and players who play spin very well. I am expecting a strong contest in the series.”
The Pakistan Cricket Board on Monday confirmed a panel of five commentators for the Pakistan v South Africa women series. Ali Younis, Ejaz Ahmed, Kainat Imtiaz, Salman Butt and Sikandar Bakht will be on the commentary panel through the course of the matches. Meanwhile, the High-Definition broadcast coverage will include 12 cameras. In Pakistan, the fans will be able to watch the matches in high definition on A Sports, while live-streaming for viewers across the Pakistan region will be available on Tamasha.
Also, to encourage fans to come to the ground, the entrance to the stadium will be free. The spectators will be required to bring their original ID card to get inside the stadium. Fazal Mahmood enclosure at the Jinnah End will be available for families and female spectators, while Saeed Anwar enclosure will be available to male spectators including school/college students.
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