National Women’s One-day Tournament to take place in Faisalabad

Staff Report

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Saturday announced the schedule of National Women’s One-day Tournament 2023/24, featuring six regional teams in the 50-over tournament. The tournament will commence from April 17 and will conclude on May 11, with the top two sides playing the final at the Iqbal Stadium in Faisalabad. The six regional teams are Karachi, Lahore, Multan, Peshawar, Quetta and Rawalpindi. The tournament will be played on a double round-robin basis, with each side having an opportunity to play a minimum of 10 matches. A total of 31 matches will be played in the 25-day tournament, with the first ball expected to be bowled at 930am in each game. The winning team will receive PKR one million, while the runners-up will get PKR 0.5 million. The player of the tournament will be awarded PKR50,000 and player of the match in each game will receive PKR20,000. The tournament’s top performers ––– best batter, best bowler and best wicket-keeper ––– will get PKR 25,000.

Furthermore, the four-member women’s national selection committee led by Saleem Jaffar has announced the squads of the six regional sides taking part in the tournament. Karachi and Lahore sides consist of 15 players each, while the other four teams consist of 14 players each. The 15th player in the four teams will be selected from Pakistan women’s 20-member probables squad, announced for the West Indies series, where four players will be released at the end of the training camp. Additionally, each side will have five more players in reserves. This makes a total of 90 players exclusively available, with 30 reserves, set to take part in the six-team tournament. Head of Women’s Cricket Tania Mallick said: “It is heartening to witness an increase in the pool of players gearing up for the tournament. With the national side busy in an international series and the women’s wing hosting a domestic tournament simultaneously, it indicates that we have a good number of players available, which also reflects a bright future for women’s cricket in Pakistan. “The tournament serves a vital opportunity for our budding cricketers, including the promising U19 players, to demonstrate their abilities on a larger stage. It also offers a perfect platform for these young athletes to gain valuable experience.”

Chief Selector Saleem Jaffar said: “The one-day tournament is the final event of the ongoing domestic season, and the selection committee has assembled the squads after thorough consultation with the regional coaches. The players are selected based on their performances in the last domestic tournaments, while some players who were injured in the previous event and are now fit have also been included. The tournament provides an opportunity for players to showcase their skills and gain the attention of the selection committee ahead of the England tour.”