LAHORE: Pakistan national women’s cricket team’s third tour of the year will commence on Wednesday (today) when they play West Indies in the first of the three T20Is at the Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Stadium. They have made trips of the Caribbean islands for three ODI series, two T20I series and two ICC Women’s T20 World Cups in the past but the first T20I will see them play on Antiguan soil for the first time. There is not much of a difference between the two sides on the ICC’s rankings for Women’s T20I teams as Pakistan are placed seventh and their opponents are sixth. Javeria Khan, the captain of the national women’s team, is optimistic that the hard yards her players put in during the preparation for this tour will bear fruit. “The women’s game has suffered a great deal in the post-pandemic world,” Javeria, Pakistan’s second most successful batter in the format with 1,882 runs, said on Tuesday. “But this tour is another great initiative from the Pakistan Cricket Board to keep the women’s game relevant in the country and keep the players involved. We come in this series after undergoing intense training camps in Multan and Karachi. Those camps were extremely important for all the players. Because of the lockdowns in different parts of the country, the sports activities had come to a complete halt. The camps provided a great opportunity for the cricketers to practice in hard and tough environment, in accordance with the demand of international cricket.” She said West Indies were a quality opposition and they would be eager to do well at home. “We, however, see this as an opportunity to do well and leave a mark. This team has got the potential to do it. Each and every player has worked hard to get here and come the day, I remain optimistic that they will rise to the challenge.” Pakistan have favourable memories of their last encounters with West Indies. They came back from behind in February 2019 to beat them 2-1 in ODIs in the ICC Women’s Championship in what was their first-ever ODI series win over them. In their most recent T20I encounter in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, they secured an easy eight-wicket win. Javeria added: “As athletes we do take inspiration from our past achievements, but every day brings new sets of challenges and we – both collectively and at individually – should be ready to surmount them.” What further add to the significance of this tour is the fact that for the first time in the history of Pakistan women’s cricket, an ‘A’ team is accompanying the national side. The ‘A’ side will play their West Indian counterparts in three T20s – which will precede the T20Is – and three one-day matches. Sidra Nawaz, who boasts an experience of 52 T20I matches, will lead the ‘A’ team in T20s. The T20I series between the two national teams will be followed by five ODIs. Pakistan squad for the tour: Javeria Khan (captain, national team), Rameen Shamim (One-Day captain, ‘A’ team), Sidra Nawaz (T20 captain, A team), Aliya Riaz, Aiman Anwar, Anam Amin, Ayesha Naseem, Ayesha Zafar, Diana Baig, Fatima Sana, Iram Javed, Jaweria Rauf, Kainat Imtiaz, Kaynat Hafeez, Maham Tariq, Muneeba Ali Siddiqui (wk), Nahida Khan, Najiha Alvi (wk), Nashra Sundhu, Natalia Parvaiz, Nida Dar, Omaima Sohail, Saba Nazir, Sadia Iqbal, Sidra Amin, and Syeda Aroob Shah.