Pakistan move Zimbabwe ODIs from Multan to Rawalpindi due to logistic issues

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has decided to move the national side's upcoming One-Day Internationals (ODIs) against Zimbabwe from Multan to Rawalpindi due to logistical and operational challenges.

Pakistan are slated to play a three-match ODI series against Zimbabwe between October 30 and November 3. The series is a part of the International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s Cricket World Cup Super League.

The shift in the venue also means that the three T20Is between Pakistan and Zimbabwe which are scheduled to take place on November 7, 8 and 10 will now be held in Lahore. The series was originally slated to take place in Rawalpindi.

Reflecting on the development, PCB Director – International Cricket, Zakir Khan said that the board decided to come up with a revised itinerary for the upcoming white-ball series against Zimbabwe after Multan became unavailable due to logistical issues.

“After Multan became unavailable due to logistical and operational reasons, we took the opportunity to revisit the entire schedule and have come up with an itinerary that is suitable for the teams, match officials, broadcasters, event staff and other support agencies," the PCB official website quoted Khan as saying.

“The availability of Rawalpindi has ensured there is no uncertainty for our ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Super League matches as we aim to collect maximum points from this series to achieve our target of qualifying directly for the ICC’s pinnacle 50-over event," he added.

Notably, Zimbabwe last travelled to Pakistan in 2015 when the two sides locked horns in a three-match ODI series and two T20Is. 

On a related note, the Super League, which was introduced to bring context to ODI cricket, will determine qualification for 2023 World Cup, with the top seven teams booking their spots for the showpiece event along with hosts India.

Featuring 13 teams (the 12 ICC Full Members and the Netherlands) who qualified by winning the ICC World Cricket League Championship 2015-17, the Super League will see each side play four home and four away three-match series.