Pak U-19 team to tour Sri Lanka

LAHORE: Pakistan under-19 team will tour Sri Lanka for two four-dayers and three 50-over matches. The tour will be Pakistan’s preparations for reclaiming the ICC U-19 Cricket World Cup. The matches will be played in Galle and Hambantota, said a Pakistan Cricket Board announced.

The ICC U-19 Cricket World Cup 2020 will be played in South Africa from 17 January to 9 February 2020, and Pakistan will aim to annex the trophy for the first time since 2006 when national captain Sarfaraz Ahmed had lifted the silverware in Colombo after defeating India in a low-scoring thriller.

Pakistan also won the title in Bangladesh in 2004, finished second in Australia (1998 and 2010) and the United Arab Emirates (2014), while they claimed third positions in Malaysia and New Zealand in 2008 and 2018, respectively.

The three-week Sri Lanka tour will comprise two four-day matches from 3-6 May and 9-12 May in Galle and Hambantota, respectively, while the 50-over fixtures will be played on 15, 17 and 20 May.

In this regard, the Junior Selection Committee, headed by former Test batsman Basit Ali, has announced 26 probables (born on or after 1 September 2000) who will feature in a three-day trial match from 11-13 April and a one-day trial match on 15 May at the National Stadium, before the 15-player squad along with five reserves are announced.

The past five ICC U-19 Cricket World Cups have given Pakistan cricketers such as Ahmed Shehzad (2010), Babar Azam, Mohammad Nawaz, Ehsan Adil ( all 2012), Sami Aslam, Imam-ul-Haq (both 2012 & 2014), Shadab Khan (2016) and Shaheen Shah Afridi (2018).

Apart from the upcoming Sri Lanka tour, a couple of more U-19 tours in the build-up to the ICC U-19 Cricket World Cup 2020 are in the pipeline and further announcements will be made in due course.

Probables - Khayyam Khan (Abbottabad), Muzammil Khan (Bahawalpur), Basit Ali (DG Khan/Multan), Irfan Niazi, Sulman Shafqat (both Faisalabad), Abbas Afridi, Aftab Alam, M Wasim, Said Nazir (all FATA), Rohail Nazir (Islamabad), M Taha, Nadir Shah, Saim Ayub (all Karachi), Fahad Munir, Qasim Akram (both Lahore), Amir Ali (Larkana), M Asif, M. Jahangir (both Multan), M Amir, M Haris, Niaz Khan, Salman Khan Jr. (all Peshawar), Akhtar Shah, M Junaid (both Quetta), Haider Ali and Shiraz Khan (Rawalpindi)

Tour schedule

3-6 May – 1st four-day match, Galle

9-12 May – 2nd four-day match, Hambantota

15 May – 1st 50-over match, Hambantota

17 May – 2nd 50-over match, Hambantota

20 May – 3rd 50-over match, Galle.