Javeria Khan to lead Pakistan women's squad in South Africa series

Karachi [Pakistan], December 31 (ANI): The Pakistan women's national selection committee on Thursday announced a 17-player squad for the ODI and T20I series against South Africa.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Wednesday informed that women's team skipper Bismah Maroof has withdrawn from next month's tour to South Africa due to family reasons. Javeria Khan will take the captaincy responsibilities in the absence of the regular skipper.
Ayesha Zafar, Kainat Imtiaz, Nahida Khan, and Nashra Sandhu return to the women's national team for the tour in which they will play the hosts in three ODIs and as many T20Is.
"The squad has been selected after closely observing the players in the recent High Performance and probables camps and the National Triangular T20 Women's Cricket Championship," Urooj Mumtaz, the chair of the national women selection committee said in an official statement.
"Javeria Khan is an experienced campaigner and has the desired understanding of the game which is necessary to lead the national women's team. She has undertaken this responsibility in the past and I am certain she will rise to the occasion and inspire the players," she added.
When the team takes the field for the first one-dayer at Kingsmead Stadium, Durban, on January 20, it will mark their return to international cricket after over 10 months due to the Covid-19-enforced hiatus.
After the second one-dayer at the same venue on January 23, they will move to Pietermaritzburg where they will play the third ODI on January 26 and the first two T20Is on January 29 and 31.
For the last T20I on February 3, which will also be the last match of the tour, the team will return to Durban.
The 17-player squad will continue to prepare for the tour in the bio-secure environment, which was set up on December 20 for the probables camp, in Karachi before their departure on January 11.
Squad (for ODIs and T20Is): Javeria Khan (c), Aimen Anwar, Aliya Riaz, Anam Amin, Ayesha Naseem, Ayesha Zafar, Diana Baig, Fatima Sana, Kainat Imtiaz, Muneeba Ali Siddiqui, Nahida Khan, Nashra Sandhu, Nida Dar, Omaima Sohail, Sadia Iqbal, Sidra Nawaz (wk) and Syeda Aroob Shah. (ANI)