South Africa have won the toss and opted to bat first against Pakistan in the third and final ODI of the three-match series at Iqbal Cricket Stadium on Saturday.
Naseem Shah and Mohammad Wasim are rested, said Shaheen Afridi. Abrar Ahmed and Haris Rauf are back in the starting lineup. Rubin Hermann makes his debut, and Ngidi is in for Linde for South Africa.
Historically, the sides have met 89 times in ODIs, with South Africa winning 53 and Pakistan 35, while one match produced no result, a record that underlines the Proteas’ edge.
Form coming in is mixed. Pakistan’s last five read L, W, L, L, W, and they will be keen to rebound after successive series defeats to New Zealand and the West Indies.
South Africa arrive with momentum from a recent series win over England; their last five stand at W, L, L, W, W, and they will look to press that advantage after choosing to bat first.
Playing XI:
Pakistan: Saim Ayub, Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Salman Agha, Hussain Talat, Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi (c), Naseem Shah and Mohammad Wasim Jr.
South Africa’s: 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.
