Published January 21, 2021 01:20 f
Faf du Plessis is set to play his 68th Test but first in Pakistan.
KARACHI (Dunya News) – When the South African group arrived in Karachi on Saturday, it involved Faf du Plessis who traveled to the country for the third time in less than four years. The classy middle-order bat was captain of the ICC World XI team for three T20Is in Lahore in 2017 and then returned to Karachi last year for Peshawar Zalmi in the 2020 Pakistan Super League HBL playoffs.
The 36-year-old is set to play his 68th Test but first in Pakistan when the two-Test series begins on January 26 at the National Stadium.
Although Faf’s previous visits have helped “reassure” the country’s security standards, the former South African Test captain admitted he did not intend to be in the traditional white people on Pakistani soil two months after the incident. his most recent visit.
Du Plessis has played seven Tests against Pakistan in which he won 246 runs – including a century – at an average of 27.33. Two of those seven matches were played at the United Arab Emirates, where Pakistan hosted home cricket from 2010 to 2019, before a complete overhaul of international cricket and high-flying in the country. .
“That’s one thing I haven’t seen happen in my time,” du Plessis told the digital PCB. “I knew cricket was happening here, but I didn’t know cricket was going to happen so quickly. I’m looking forward to it and I hope it’s as it was 13 years ago – the wickets are smooth so we can put the batters on some running. ”
He said it was important that Pakistani players continue to play cricket on their home ground to encourage youngsters to take up the game and he was still hopeful that this trip would bring more international teams to the country.
“It is important that Pakistan plays in home settings. They have been playing in the UAE for the past 11 years. So, their fans haven’t seen them play and that’s almost like a generation and that’s seen them play.
“Pakistani fans are as proud of their team as any other nation, but it is only when you tour the subcontinent that you realize that people here are very passionate about cricket. They go to every game and support their team though. Singing, singing, there will be energy all day.
“If Pakistan gets that support back, there will be a lot of joy for the people.”
Reflecting on the 2017 tour with the ICC World XI, du Plessis said: “I think so [the ICC World XI’s tour of Pakistan] very important in the context of the return of cricket to Pakistan. Zero cricket was not happening in Pakistan at that stage.
“That was the first step in bringing cricket of any kind back and I think what they did well at that level was to bring players from all over the world. world to come play and see the security levels were going to be real, very good and it gave players peace of mind.
“I was the captain of that team so I had to go back to South Africa, and then talk about what I experienced was feeling safe in Pakistan as a real top off are we today. ”
The second Test between the two teams will be played at Pindi Cricket Stadium, Rawalpindi, from February 4, before traveling to Lahore for three T20Is on February 11, 13 and 14 at Gaddafi Stadium.