Watch: South Africa cricket team arrives in Pakistan for the first time in 14 years
The South Africa cricket team has landed in Karachi ahead of its historic ICC World Test Championship series against Pakistan. The Proteas have reached Pakistan for an international tour for the first time since October 2007. The two sides will play a couple of Tests and 3 T20Is.
International cricket stopped in Pakistan following an attack on the Sri Lankan team in 2009. The Pakistan cricket team used the stadiums in the United Arab Emirates as its adopted home venues for international fixtures.
Gradually, cricketing nations have resumed touring Pakistan after an improvement in security levels. Here is the clip of the South Africa cricket team's 'touchdown' in Karachi.
The last time the South Africa cricket team played a Test match against Pakistan was in October 2007. That fixture in Lahore ended in a stalemate. The visitors won the series 1-0, courtesy of their 160-run victory in the preceding Karachi Test match.
The South Africa cricket team has an excellent record in Pakistan. The Proteas have battled the hosts in seven Tests, losing only one of them. They have registered a win in a couple of them, while the remaining four matches were drawn.
Can the South Africa cricket team continue its winning momentum in the ICC World Test Championship?
The South Africa cricket team crushed Sri Lanka at home in the ICC World Test Championship. They registered two convincing victories against the islanders in their first Test series after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Quinton de Kock's men will look forward to carrying that winning momentum into their Pakistan tour.
It will be interesting to see if South Africa can draw inspiration from their record in Pakistan and win their second consecutive series under the ICC World Test Championship.
The series gets underway with the first Test starting on January 26 in Karachi.