Pakistan skipper Babar Azam said that his side will try to continue the winning momentum in the limited-overs series against West Indies.
Pakistan is all set to host West Indies for the three-T20I and three-ODI series. The 20-over games will be played from 13th to 16th December while the 50-over games will be played between 18th to 22nd December. All six games will be played in Karachi.
West Indies will play in absence of some key players as regular skipper Kieron Pollard is out due to injury while premier all-rounder Andre Russell is playing in the BBL 11.
In Pollard’s absence, Nicholas Pooran will lead the team in T20Is and Shai Hope will captain in ODIs.
The likes of Sheldon Cottrell, Roston Chase and Kyle Mayers have tested positive for COVID-19 and are ruled out of the T20I series. The trio will now have to serve mandatory 10-day isolation in Karachi and will be under observation of team's physician until they return negative tests.
Speaking on the eve of the first T20I, Pakistan skipper Babar Azam said that his side will carry the momentum that started in T20 World Cup 2021. He admitted that they will not take West Indies lightly despite them being the second-string side.
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“We will try to carry the momentum which started in the (T20) World Cup. We are not going to take them (West Indies) easy because they didn’t bring their best players. They have played in the CPL (Caribbean Premier League) and international games, so you have to give your 100 per cent to beat them,” Babar Azam told reporters during a video conference.
Babar Azam also talked about the positive COVID-19 cases in the West Indies camp and admitted that it’s a difficult time for the team as the whole combination gets affected.
He added that they are happy about playing at home in front of full capacity crowds at the National Stadium, Karachi for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It’s difficult to time for a team when your player tests positive. It’s difficult to live in isolation, our team has gone through this. Lots of negative things do come in your mind when you are alone in the room and the team combination also gets affected. The main thing is we are playing the home series and for us the best thing is full crowd will be allowed inside the stadium,” he said.
(AP inputs)
