After getting hosting rights for the ICC Men’s Champions Trophy 2025, Pakistan is expected to host another international event as it would host the ICC Women’s World Cup 2025 Qualifiers, sources privy to the development told Geo News.
The upcoming qualifying matches will be held in different cities this year ahead of the Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025 which will be hosted by India.
Alongside the hosts, women teams from five more countries, including Bangladesh, Ireland, Scotland, Thailand and West Indies, will partake in the qualifiers to be organised in Pakistan in April, the sources said. They added that the ICC would formally announce details of the matches soon.
The finalists of the qualifying event will join the top six teams of the ICC Women’s Championship 2022-25 for the eight-team World Cup.
For the unversed, Pakistan will play the ICC Women’s World Cup Qualifiers 2025 alongside the five other teams in a bid to book their spot in the mega event.
The country is currently hosting a Tri-Nation Series involving Pakistan, New Zealand and South Africa as a warm-up to the much-anticipated tournament of the eight-team Champions Trophy going to kick off on February 19.
Last month, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced a 27-day training camp to boost the national team’s preparations for the ICC Women’s World Cup Qualifiers 2025.
A total of 31 players, including 16 centrally-contracted cricketers, were invited to the a 27-day training camp at the PCB’s High Performance Academy in Faisalabad from February 2-28.
The camp involves 50-over practice matches and regular training sessions to improve the skills and fitness of the players, according to the cricket board.
List of players invited to the camp:
Batters: Aliya Riaz, Ayesha Zafar, Eyman Fatima, Gull Feroza, Gull Rukh, Hafsa Khalid, Iram Javed, Natalia Parvaiz, Sadaf Shamas, Saira Jabeen, Shawaal Zulfiqar, and Sidra Amin.
Wicketkeepers: Muneeba Ali, Najiha Alvi and Sidra Nawaz
All-rounders: Fatima Sana, Omaima Sohail, Rameen Shamim, Syeda Aroob Shah, and Tuba Hassan
Spinners: Ghulam Fatima, Mahnoor Aftab, Nashra Sundhu, Sadia Iqbal, Tania Saeed, and Umm-e-Hani
Pacers: Diana Baig, Fatima Khan, Tasmia Rubab, Waheeda Akhtar and Zaib-un-Nisa Niaz