Grave…We look forward to returning to a competitive series with another proud Test cricketing nation (Photo: AFP)
LAHORE, Pakistan (CMC) — Pakistan is scheduled to host seven Test matches, including two against the West Indies, between August this year and February next year in a packed international red-ball home season.
The Pakistan Cricket Board announced on Friday that the men’s national team will play a three-Test series and take part in the first One-Day International Tri-series in 21 years ahead of the eight-team ICC Champions Trophy 2025, which will be held in Pakistan. It will be the first time in nearly two decades that a Caribbean side will play a Test match on the ground.
West Indies are scheduled to play two Test matches against Pakistan in Karachi on January 16 and Multan on January 24. It will be only the eighth Test tour to the country since the opponents gained Test match status in 1952.
“We have toured Pakistan on a number of occasions in recent years but it has been almost 20 years since we last played Test cricket there,” Cricket West Indies chief executive Jonny Grave said.
“The 2006 series also saw Test matches being played in Karachi and Multan and we look forward to returning for another competitive series against a country that prides itself on its cricket with another Test match.”
The last time a Caribbean team played a Test match in Pakistan in 2006, Brian Lara’s men suffered a 0-2 defeat in three consecutive matches against Inzamam-ul-Haq’s side.
Of the 21 Test matches played in Pakistan, the West Indies have won four, lost nine and ended in draws in the remaining eight.
Pakistan have played five Test matches against the West Indies in the United Arab Emirates in 2002 and 2016, when they were the hosts. The Caribbean side have lost all but one of them.
The two-Test series will be West Indies’ final match in the current cycle of the ICC World Test Championship.
The top nine Test match qualifying nations will play six series each (three home series and three away series) in the ICC World Test Championship 2023-25 cycle.
So far, the West Indies have played a total of four matches in two series, a home game against India in July last year and an away game against Australia in January this year, with a record of one win, two losses and one draw.
This leaves the team in sixth place in the points table with 16 points and they will be hoping to add more when they take on hosts England in three Test matches this month.
India are currently at the top of the table with 74 points after the three series, followed by Australia (90 points from four series), New Zealand (36 points from three series), Sri Lanka (24 points from two series) and Pakistan (22 points from two series).
