Pakistan opted to bowl first after winning the toss in the opening one-day international (ODI) of the three-match series against South Africa, to be played at the Iqbal Stadium in Faisalabad on Tuesday.
Pakistan captain Shaheen Afridi explained that his decision was guided by the newness of the pitch and the significant amount of time since Faisalabad last hosted an ODI match.
South African captain Matthew Breetzke said the pitch looked dry and expected dew could come into play in the later stages of the match.
Playing XIs:
Pakistan: Saim Ayub, Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Salman Agha, Hussain Talat, Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi (c), Naseem Shah and Abrar Ahmed.
South Africa: Quinton de Kock (wk), Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Tony de Zorzi, Matthew Breetzke (c), Sinethemba Qeshile, Donovan Ferreira, George Linde, Corbin Bosch, Bjorn Fortuin, Lungi Ngidi and Lizaad Williams.
The three-match ODI series is part of the Proteas tour of Pakistan, with an all-format series. The two-match Test series was shared 1-1 by both teams, while Pakistan won the three-match T20I series 2-1.
With the first ODI, international cricket has returned to Faisalabad after 17 years. The remaining matches will be played at the same location on November 6 and 8.
The last international match at the Iqbal Stadium was played on April 11, 2008, when Pakistan defeated Bangladesh in an ODI by seven wickets. The historic venue has hosted sixteen ODIs so far, including four World Cup matches: one in 1987 and three in 1996.
Pakistan has participated in 12 ODIs on this ground, winning nine and losing three. South Africa, on the other hand, has played five ODIs here, winning two and losing three. In all ODIs between the two sides, Pakistan and South Africa have met 87 times with Pakistan winning 34 times and South Africa emerging victorious in 52 encounters. In Pakistan, both teams have won eight of the sixteen matches each.
In Faisalabad, Pakistan and South Africa participated in three ODIs. Pakistan has won twice (in 1994 and 2007), while South Africa has won once (2003).
