The Pakistan cricket team received a grand welcome at the Hyderabad airport on Wednesday as they arrived for the World Cup 2023. The Babar Azam-led and Mohammad Rizwan co-led Pakistan contingent had taken a connecting flight from Lahore via Dubai to Hyderabad and touched down in India yesterday evening.
There was a considerable amount of crowd gathered in and outside the Hyderabad airport to give a rousing welcome to the neighbors. This is Pakistan’s first trip to India since the 2016 T20 World Cup.
Pakistan wicket-keeper Mohammad Rizwan took to Twitter to thank the crowd for a warm reception at the Hyderabad airport. The fans cheered when they saw a glimpse of the likes of Mohammad Rizwan, Babar Azam, and Shaheen Afridi. Some fans even chanted Babar’s name.
Mohammad Rizwan tweeted: “Amazing reception from the people here. Everything was super smooth. Looking forward to the next 1.5 months.”
This tweet from Mohammad Rizwan has gone viral
The Pakistani skipper Babar Azam had also taken to his Instagram story to express his emotions about the support he got at the Hyderabad airport.
“Overwhelmed with the love and support here in Hyderabad!” Babar Azam captioned his Insta story.
Talking about the Pakistan team, they have lost the services of fast bowler Naseem Shah due to a shoulder injury he picked up in the Asia Cup 2023. Pakistan recalled veteran pacer Hasan Ali for the World Cup. Pakistan have included young leg-spinner Usama Mir, seeing Shadab Khan’s dipping form in the Asia Cup.
Pakistan had failed to reach the final of the Asia Cup 2023 suffering defeats against India and Sri Lanka. They finished 4th in the Super 4 round, even below Bangladesh.
Pakistan will play their two warm-up matches, against New Zealand and Australia in Hyderabad, on September 29 and October 3. They will kick off their World Cup tournament on October 6 against the Netherlands, followed by a match against Sri Lanka on October 10, before they meet the hosts and arch-rivals India on October 14 in Ahmedabad.
