ISLAMABAD, JAN 28 (DNA) : Australian High Commissioner to Pakistan, Dr Geoffrey Shaw met the Pakistan National Women’s Cricket team today in Karachi and wished them good luck ahead of the ICC T20 Women’s Cricket World Cup in Australia.
Starting on Friday 21 February, reigning champions Australia will host 10 teams and 23 matches across six cities.
Speaking at the event, the High Commissioner said, ‘It is a great privilege to meet the Pakistan National Women’s Cricket Team today. I wish the team a fantastic stay in Australia. The players will receive a very warm Australian welcome. We expect some fabulous cricket.’
High Commissioner Shaw highlighted it will be a big year for women’s cricket in Australia.
‘Australia is about to become the first cricketing nation to close the gender prize money gap. At this year’s T20 World Cup, Cricket Australia will top up prize money won by the women’s team to deliver parity with their male counterparts,’ Dr Shaw said.
The High Commissioner also invited fans and visitors from Pakistan to be part of the T20 World Cup and #FILLTHEMCG campaign.
‘We are holding the final of the World Cup at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), the biggest cricket stadium in the world, with a bold ambition to set a record for attendance at a women’s sporting fixture,’ he added.
The current record for attendance at a women’s sporting fixture is 90,185, set at the final of the 1999 FIFA Women’s World Cup in the USA. “We aim to beat that,” he added.
Present at the reception were players selected for the T20 World Cup, the Chair of the Pakistan national women’s selection committee Urooj Mumtaz, the team’s coaches and senior members of the Pakistan Cricket Board.
The Pakistan team would depart for Australia on 31 January and will play its first match against West Indies on 26 February at Manuka Oval.
