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Nida Dar appointed captain of Pakistan women’s team

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The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Thursday announced that under the new structure of the women’s cricket team, veteran Pakistan all-rounder Nida Dar was selected as captain, while Mark Coles was reappointed as head coach of the Pakistan women’s team.

Former Test cricketer Saleem Jaffar has been appointed chief selector, PCB confirmed in an announcement made via a press release.

After the approval of PCB Management Committee Chairman Najam Sethi, the names were announced.

“The appointments have been made in light of the PCB’s vision and strategy to invest further into women’s cricket and keeping in mind the upcoming international assignments, including hosting South Africa and tours to Bangladesh and New Zealand for the ICC Women’s Championship 2022-25 fixtures,” PCB said in a statement.

Overall, in an 11-month period from August 2023 to July 2024, Pakistan women’s team is scheduled to play five bilateral cricket series comprising a total of 15 ICC Women’s Championship 2022-25 ODIs. In addition to these 50-over matches, Pakistan will play as many as 17 T20Is. These ODIs and T20Is will lead to the 10-team ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in Bangladesh and the eight-team ICC Women’s World Cup in India, which will be held in 2024 and 2025, respectively.

Nida Dar

Nida won the PCB Women’s Cricketer of the Year for 2021 and replaces Bismah Maroof, who stepped down from captaincy following the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2023 in South Africa. Nida is one of the most experienced players in the country, having represented Pakistan in 130 T20Is and 99 ODIs.

She is also the leading wicket-taker in T20I women’s cricket with 126 wickets to her name.

Nida was also a member of the Pakistan side that won the Asian Games gold in 2010 and 2014 in Guangzhou, China, and Incheon, South Korea. In 2019, she became the first Pakistan women’s cricketer to feature in Australia’s women’s franchise cricket.

In the ICC Women’s Rankings, Nida is presently ranked 32nd, 24th, and ninth in the ODI batters, bowlers, and all-rounders’ categories, respectively. In T20Is, Nida is the 38th-ranked batter, 21st-ranked bowler, and seventh-ranked all-rounder.

Mark Coles

Coles previously served as Pakistan women’s cricket team head coach from 2017 to 2019 and during his time, the side achieved major results, including a fifth finish in the ICC Women’s Championship 2017-2020 that paved the way for the side to feature in the ICC Women’s World Cup 2022.

Also during his time, Sana Mir became the most successful ODI spinner in the world, Javeria Khan and Bismah Maroof were named to lead a multi-nation Women’s Global Development Squad and Nida Dar became the first Pakistan woman player to earn a contract in the WBBL.

Coaching panel

Mark Coles (head coach), Mohtashim Rasheed (fielding coach), Taufeeq Umar (batting coach) and Saleem Jaffar (bowling coach).

Selection committee

Saleem Jaffar (chairman), Asmavia Iqbal, Marina Iqbal and Mohtashim Rasheed (members).

Upcoming bilateral series of Pakistan women’s team 

Aug/Sep 2023: South Africa tour to Pakistan (three ODIs & three T20Is)

Oct/Nov 2023: Pakistan tour to Bangladesh (three ODIs & three T20Is)

Nov/Dec 2023: Pakistan tour to New Zealand (three ODIs & three T20Is)

Feb 2024: West Indies tour to Pakistan (three ODIs & five T20Is)

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Jul 2024: Pakistan tour to England (three ODIs & three T20Is)

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Champions Trophy 2025 will remain in Pakistan, the CEO of the ICC has said.

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Dismissing any rumors that the Champions Trophy 2025 will be moved to a different nation, International Cricket Council (ICC) Chief Executive Geoff Allardice has stated that the tournament will take place in Pakistan as planned.

The 2025 ICC Champions Trophy is slated to take place in Pakistan in February and March. Nevertheless, India’s participation in the competition is up in the air since the BCCI is still awaiting government sanction to travel there.

Recall that there were rumors in Indian media, backed by the BCCI, that the Indian team would not be traveling to Pakistan for the forthcoming ICC match.

Additional reports stated that the board had formally suggested Sri Lanka and Dubai as possible locations for India’s match.

According to Geoff Allardice, who denied the reports, no team has expressed reluctance to play in the competition.

Allardice voiced her appreciation over Pakistan’s hosting of the Women’s T20 World Cup during a press conference in Dubai. He went on to emphasize that Pakistan is the ICC’s choice to host the Champions Trophy.

Remarkably, Pakistan is preparing three stadiums for the Champions Trophy in Karachi, Lahore, and Rawalpindi.

The PCB Chairman, Mohsin Naqvi, has revealed that the stadium modifications will be finished prior to the start of the Champions Trophy.

Gaddafi Stadium’s basement will be built by September 30. It will take three weeks to finish each floor. A steel framework would make up the front building. By December 31, the primary structure of Gaddafi Stadium will be finished, according to Naqvi.

“The seats will be erected in the stadium prior to the Champions Trophy; Indi Stadium will need to be fully destroyed and rebuilt.

“The Champions Trophy will take place before the renovations at Karachi’s [National Stadium] are finished,” he said.

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In the possible return of the Afro-Asian Cup, players from Pakistan and India might go together.

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Pakistan and India were among the best sub-continent nations that competed in the Afro-Asia Cup, which was contested in 2005 and 2007. The Africa XI was comprised of South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Kenya. The Asia XI was comprised of two teams.

Due to problems with broadcasting and political hurdles, the event was canceled after only two editions, despite the fact that it received a great deal of attention and appreciation from cricket lovers all over the world.

The negotiations regarding the resuscitation of the Afro-Asia Cup sprang to life a few days after Jay Shah was appointed to the position of Chairman of the International Cricket Council (ICC!).

The competition was played in the format of a Twenty20 match, but the next edition of the tournament might be played in the format of a Twenty20 match.

Samod Damodar, the chairman of the African Cricket Association (ACA), presented conjecture over the possibility that the idea will actually be adopted. In addition, he provided an update on the situation.

The fact that the Afro-Asia Cup did not take place is something that has left me feeling extremely upset. Despite the fact that the Affordable Care Act (ACA) did not receive sufficient momentum, it is currently being reconsidered. To a large extent, I believe that it was a lack of comprehension and a refusal to support the idea. It is something that our members deeply lament. It was necessary for Africa to be the driving force behind it,” Damodar was quoted as saying in a story published by Forbes.

With the belief that the Afro-Asia Cup has the potential to alleviate political tensions, Damodar has great hopes for the competition.

It is possible that these matches will break down political boundaries that are currently in place. Instead than driving a wedge between people, cricket can help establish bridges between them. In my opinion, I do not feel that players are hostile toward one another; therefore, I am confident that they would be willing to participate in this activity. The fact that Mahinda is now a member of the International Cricket Council board and Jay Shah is the current president of the ICC may give this cause a little bit more traction. When it comes to making this happen, both of them have always been proactive in their efforts,” he went on to say.

Claims concerning the restoration of the Afro-Asia Cup also emerged in June 2022, claiming that the competition would make its return in the middle of 2023. For those who are unaware, these claims suggested that the tournament would return.

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Champions Trophy: Pakistan will be visited by an ICC delegation next week

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Pakistan, who are also the reigning champions, will host the 50-over competition in February and March of next year.

The heads and representatives of various ICC departments are part of the visiting delegation.

Along with these topics, the inspection team will talk about the tournament’s schedule, practice matches, locations, and ticketing.

The group will receive an update on the global premium tournament’s upgraded venues from PCB executives.

Within two days, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) will receive the schedule from the ICC, according to sources.

During its inspection, the ICC will visit all three of the tournament’s locations in Lahore, Rawalpindi, and Karachi and examine the arrangements for the next events.

The Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore, National Stadium in Karachi, and Rawalpindi International Cricket Stadium are the three sites that will stage the enormous show. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) allotted Rs 12.80 billion earlier this year for their renovations.

In the upcoming year, the ICC Champions Trophy will be held at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore, the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, and the National Stadium in Karachi, from February 19 to March 9.

The countries that make up Group B are Australia, England, Afghanistan, South Africa, and Pakistan, India, New Zealand, and Bangladesh.

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