The overall schedule for the West Indies cricket team’s upcoming tour of Pakistan has been announced by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). West Indies will tour Pakistan in the month of January for a two-match Test series which will begin on January 17.
The first Test of the series will be played from January 17-21. On the other hand, the second Test will be played from January 25-29. Both the matches are part of the World Test Championship cycle and will be played in Multan.
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PCB unveils schedule for West Indies’ upcoming tour of Pakistan
The West Indies team will depart from the Caribbean islands on January 2 and arrive in Islamabad on January 6. Afterwards, they will train for a few days before taking on Pakistan Shaheens in a warm-up game from January 10-12 at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.
The team will then travel to Multan for the first Test of the series. Both the Tests of the series will be played on the same ground. The pitch is likely to assist the spinners after Pakistan’s recent record at home. Multan recently hosted two Tests against England.
The first Test was played in a batting paradise while the pitch-assisted spin bowling in the second Test. Interestingly, both the matches were played on the same surface to aid spin bowling and allow Pakistan’s spinners to come into the game.
Earlier, the first Test was scheduled to be held in Karachi. However, the construction work going on in the stadium due to the upcoming Champions Trophy prompted the PCB to reschedule the match. As a result, both the Tests will be held in Multan which will also serve the logistical purposes.
West Indies’ historic tour of Pakistan
This will be West Indies’ first Pakistan tour for Tests in 19 years. They last played a Test match in Pakistan way back in November 2006 when they played a three-match Test series in the country. However, they played Pakistan in an away series in the UAE in October 2016.
At that time, Pakistan won the three-match Test series 2-1. The Men in Green won the first two Tests but West Indies ended the series well by winning the third Test match. Since then, Pakistan have toured West Indies twice.
The series will be important for Pakistan given their chances of qualifying for the World Test Championship (WTC) Final. While West Indies are already out of the race, Pakistan have a slim chance of making it to the summit clash if things go their way.
But the Men in Green need to win both the Tests in South Africa first to keep their chances alive. Pakistan are currently seventh in the WTC points table while West Indies are lurking at the bottom.
West Indies tour of Pakistan schedule
10-12 January – Three-day wam-up match vs Pakistan Shaheens, Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium
17-21 January – First Test, Multan Cricket Stadium
25-29 January – Second Test, Multan Cricket Stadium