Pakistan captain Sarfraz Ahmed has urged his side to approach South Africa ‘without fear’ as they look to pick up their pieces from their heartbreaking Test series defeat to New Zealand in the UAE.
Sarfraz’s men will play Three tests, five one-day internationals and three Twenty20s against the Proteas.
They have only won two Tests out of their past five tours in South Africa, and must recover from a Test series loss against Blackcaps after being in the driving seat for much of the finale in Abu Dhabi.
However, Sarfraz – who recently said he is willing to step down as captaincy if he doesn’t get the required results – has backed Pakistan to deliver in South Africa should veteran batsmen Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq set the tone.
“Conditions in South Africa are tough with bouncy and seaming pitches so anyone who plays without fear and with a big heart will succeed,” Sarfraz told AFP.
“We need big innings from both Azhar and Shafiq and they are capable of doing that, so if we put good totals on board we have a good bowling attack to win the match.”
Worst Batting Average as Captain since Sarfraz Ahmed was announced as Test Captain
— Israr Ahmed Hashmi (@IamIsrarHashmi) December 7, 2018
28.50 Sarfraz Ahmed
30.05 Jason Holder
36.50 Faf du Plesis
45.57 Joe Root
49.39 Dinesh Chandimal
55.27 Kane Williamson
63.20 Steve Smith
70.65 Virat Kohli
*min 10 innings batted #PAKvNZ
Mohammad Amir is also back amongst the squad after being dropped for both the Australia and New Zealand tours in the UAE.
In the meantime, he has taken 23 wickets in four domestic red-ball matches back home.
“Amir is back after a good performance at the domestic level so we hope he gets us key wickets in Tests,” said Sarfraz of Amir.
Pakistan open the tour with a three-day game against Cricket South Africa Invitation XI at Benoni from December 19, with the first Test commencing November 26 in Centurion.