Karachi to host all matches between Pakistan, New Zealand due to weather concerns in Multan
Dec 24, 2022
Karachi [Pakistan], December 24 : Karachi will host the three-match ODI and two Tests series between Pakistan and New Zealand because of poor weather conditions in Multan, the Pakistan Cricket Board announced on Saturday.
The series of two Tests and three ODIs will be played in Karachi.
"The Pakistan Cricket Board and New Zealand Cricket have mutually agreed to shift the second Test in Multan to Karachi due to deteriorating weather conditions, which have already disrupted flight operations and may also potentially result in the loss of playing hours," Pakistan Cricket Board said in an official statement.
The PCB noted that the weather in Multan had "already disrupted flight operations and may also potentially result in the loss of playing hours".
"It has also been agreed between the two boards that the second Test and the three ODIs will now be brought forward by a day, meaning the second Test will commence on 2 January with the three ICC Men's Cricket World Cup Super League fixtures to be played on 9, 11 and 13 January," it further added.
Due to the adjustment, Karachi will now serve as the host city for all four games of the series--two World Test Championship contests and three World Cup Super League ODIs. Due to the first Test beginning a day earlier than anticipated, the ODIs will now be played on January 9, 11, and 13. The first Test will be played from December 26 to December 30.
Early in December, Multan played host to the second Test between Pakistan and England. Despite no visibility-related delays, the air quality there was noticeably worse than it was in Rawalpindi, where the first Test was held. Fog at the time caused the trip to Multan to be delayed by about four hours, and visibility in the early morning was much worse than usual.
The current 15-player New Zealand squad will be captained by veteran fast bowler Tim Southee and it will begin the tour with the first Test in Karachi from Monday. The second Test is in Multan from January 3, followed by ODIs on January 10, 12 and 14 in Karachi.
Pakistan earlier named an uncapped middle-order batter Kamran Ghulam and fast bowler Hasan Ali in the 16-player squad for the two-Test series against New Zealand, which will commence at Karachi's National Stadium on Monday, December 26.
New Zealand Test squad for Pakistan: Tim Southee (c), Michael Bracewell, Tom Blundell (wk), Devon Conway, Matt Henry, Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Ajaz Patel, Glenn Phillips, Ish Sodhi, Blair Tickner, Neil Wagner, Kane Williamson, Will Young.
Test squad: Babar Azam (captain), Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Naseem Shah, Noman Ali, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Salman Ali Agha, Saud Shakeel, Shan Masood and Zahid Mehmood.
