Pakistan women’s team arrives in Colombo for ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup

COLOMBO: The Pakistan women’s cricket team, led by captain Fatima Sana, has arrived in Colombo ahead of the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup.

The team will begin its training sessions from today, with practice scheduled to start at 2:00 PM local time, according to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).

Pakistan will play its first warm-up match against Sri Lanka on Sept. 25, followed by a second warm-up fixture against South Africa on Sept. 28.

The team will open its World Cup campaign on Oct. 2 against Bangladesh, followed by a key match against traditional rivals India on Oct. 5.

Speaking at a pre-departure press conference in Lahore, head coach Muhammad Wasim said the recently concluded ODI series against South Africa had been “very useful” for building momentum ahead of the World Cup. Although Pakistan lost the three-match series 2-1, he stressed that the focus was not solely on results.

“The matches allowed us to evaluate different aspects of our game. Winning was secondary; our main objective was to get the players ready for World Cup conditions, and we’ve achieved that to a large extent,” he noted.

Wasim added that the weather in Sri Lanka, the World Cup host, is similar to Lahore, which he said would help the players adapt quickly and deliver strong performances.

Pakistan’s group-stage fixtures:

Vs Bangladesh Oct. 2

Vs India Oct. 5

Vs Australia on Oct. 8

Vs England on Oct. 15

Vs New Zealand on Oct. 18

Vs South Africa on Oct. 21

Vs Sri Lanka on Oct. 24

India and Sri Lanka are jointly hosting the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025. Pakistan will play all of its matches in Sri Lanka under a hybrid model agreed between the boards. Under this arrangement, fixtures involving either side are held at neutral venues, ensuring participation without compromising on security or logistics.