ISLAMABAD
Marking a historic milestone, the Pakistan women’s blind cricket team is set to embark on its first-ever international tour as the squad departs for Brisbane, Australia today (Thursday) from Islamabad.
The Green Shirts will face the Australian women’s blind cricket team in a five-match T20 International series scheduled to be played from April 20 to 25 in Brisbane.
Speaking to the media, Syed Sultan Shah, Chairman of the Pakistan Blind Cricket Council (PBCC), said the women’s team, like the men’s, is driven by passion and commitment to make the nation proud. “The squad has been selected purely on merit,” he emphasized.
Shah also confirmed that the Women’s Blind Cricket World Cup will be held later this year in Nepal and India.
However, Pakistan will not travel to India, and all matches against India will be held at neutral venues.
“Despite our contributions to representing Pakistan globally, there is still no dedicated stadium for blind cricket in the country,” he said. “Even in a city like Lahore with hundreds of grounds, not one is allocated for blind teams.”
Team captain Nimra Rafiq, hailing from Rawalpindi, shared her excitement ahead of the tour: “For the first time in history, we are representing Pakistan at an international event. It’s a huge honor. We are thrilled and confident, and we aim to raise Pakistan’s flag high in Australia.”
Nimra Rafique, hailing from Rawalpindi, will lead Paistan squad against Australia while players selected to represent Pakistan in the series includes B1 category (Rimsha Shabbir, Shumaila Kiran, Saira, Bushra Zahoor, Esha Faisal); B2 category (Kiran Rafique, Nusrat Batool, Maryam Khan, Hooria Malik, Rabia Naveed); B3 category (Nisha, Emaan Arshed, Mehreen Ali, Farhat Ghafoor B3, Armeen Tariq, Noor Fatima).
The PBCC Chairman, has also confirmed the management team for the tour: Abdul Razzaq – Head Coach, Ms. Bakhtawar Iqbal – Assistant Coach, Ms. Shahida Shaheen – Trainer, Ms. Rabbia Javaid Hashmi – Team Manager.
