Lahore: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has announced that Chief Selector Inzamam-ul-Haq has finalized the national team for the upcoming World Cup set to begin in the first week of next month in India, and the announcement will be made tomorrow.According to a statement issued after the PCB meeting, PCB Chairman Zaka Ashraf held a meeting with the coaching staff of the national cricket team, including captain Babar Azam, vice-captain Shadab Khan, and former captains Misbah-ul-Haq and Mohammad Hafeez, to review the performance of the national team in the recently held Asia Cup in Sri Lanka.The statement mentioned that Chief Selector Inzamam-ul-Haq couldn’t attend the meeting yesterday due to a medical emergency, but today he met with Zaka Ashraf and shared his views. The board has revealed that after the completion of this review, Chief Selector Inzamam-ul-Haq has given the final shape to the selection of the Pakistani team, and the announcement of the Pakistani team for the World Cup will be made on Friday at 11 AM.The national team will depart for the neighboring country India next month to participate in the World Cup, which is scheduled to start on October 5. The national team will kick off their campaign with a warm-up match on September 29 at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad.Due to security concerns, the warm-up match between Pakistan and New Zealand was held behind closed doors.Indian media had reported that the police had asked the Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) to postpone the warm-up match due to security concerns, as the police would be busy with security arrangements for the Hindu religious festival ending on September 28.Reports also indicated that those who had purchased tickets for this match would be refunded.In the World Cup, Pakistan will play their first match against the Netherlands on October 6 in Hyderabad, followed by a match against Sri Lanka on October 10, also in Hyderabad.The traditional rivals, Pakistan and India, will face each other on October 14 at the iconic Ahmedabad ground, the largest cricket stadium in the world, following which Pakistan will play their match against Australia on October 20.The national team’s match against Afghanistan will take place on October 23 in Chennai, while the match against South Africa will be held in Chennai on October 27. Pakistan and Bangladesh will face each other at Eden Gardens, Kolkata, on October 31.Pakistan will play their match against New Zealand on November 4 in Bangalore, and their last group-stage match will be against England on November 11 at Eden Garens in Kolkata.The World Cup will kick off in Ahmedabad on October 5 with a match between defending champions England and New Zealand, who faced each other in the final of the previous World Cup.
(Thanks to: Dawn News)