All eyes will be on Shaheen with questions over how long he will be the captain. The star pacer led the Men in Green for five T20Is in January 2024 before being sacked. This will be the first time he will captain the national team in ODI cricket.
South Africa are playing a second-string squad with Matthew Breetzke leading the team in just his 7 ODIs. He made his debut in Pakistan earlier this year and has made a record-breaking start to his captaincy. With focus on the Test series vs India, the Proteas are without the likes of regular skipper Temba Bavuma, vice-captain Aiden Markram, Kagiso Rabada, Marco Jansen, Keshan Maharaj while David miller is missing due to injury.
On the other hand as always, Pakistan are playing a first-choice team as they aim to get few wins on the belt following a dreadful run of results across formats.
Toss: The toss will take place at 2:30 PM Local (3:00 PM IST)
Pitch Report: While the ground is hosting international cricket after a long time, a flat pitch with a high-scoring clash is on the cards
Weather Report: No rain is expected with a cool day, with a maximum temperature of 28 °Cand a minimum of 16 °C expected
Pakistan Squad: Saim Ayub, Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan(w), Hussain Talat, Salman Agha, Hasan Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi(c), Mohammad Nawaz, Haris Rauf, Abrar Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Naseem Shah, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Faisal Akram, Haseebullah Khan
South Africa Squad: Saim Ayub, Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan(w), Hussain Talat, Salman Agha, Hasan Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi(c), Mohammad Nawaz, Haris Rauf, Abrar Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Naseem Shah, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Faisal Akram, Haseebullah Khan
