It's been more than 25 years since Australia first hosted Pakistan for a women's cricket match and yet, since then, the occasion has been few and far between.
In February 1997, an inexperienced group of Pakistani cricketers, desperate to qualify for the upcoming Women's World Cup, headed to New Zealand to make their international debut. After playing two ODIs against the White Ferns, they then crossed the ditch, with one more international fixture left to come on their southern hemisphere tour.
In Melbourne, they faced a legendary team captained by Belinda Clark in a standalone ODI and right from the beginning, the visitors were on the back foot, fielding just 10 players and losing the toss to a bunch of Aussies that loved to bat.
Clark took her place at the top of the order, and alongside fellow opener Lisa Keightley, both players made centuries, before Zoe Goss came close as well (Clark 131, Keightley 156, Goss 94).
It was a steep learning curve for Pakistan, who found runs just as hard to come by as wickets. In the end, they were all-out for 23, as Olivia Magno did her best with the ball (4/11).
Heading home, their record didn't look so great (0-3), but they'd achieved what they'd set out to do when they were granted entry to their first Women's World Cup.
Meanwhile, they'd also enticed former Australian player Jodie Davis to take on the role of coach, after she'd been part of an ACT team that had played a practice match against them during their tour of Australia.
That December, in India, Pakistan's third World Cup outing came against Clark's side in the group stages and sure, it was another landslide result, but there were signs of improvement.
Although the team were all-out for 27 after batting first, they were able to dismiss openers Keightley and Goss for a combined 7 runs, leaving the rest of the chase up to Michelle Goszko.
Pakistan also put up a good fight against England, batting out the full 50 overs, hitting a couple of sixes against their fast bowlers and losing just three wickets throughout the innings.
Pakistan may have finished the tournament and their first year on the international stage without a win, but they had certainly put the wheels in motion for future generations to follow in their footsteps.
For context, by this point, Australia had already had a women's team established since 1934 and had been playing ODI cricket since the '70s.
In the years that have passed after those initial meetings between the sides, further battles have become a rare commodity – with just two bi-lateral series held during that 25-year period.
The Aussies last hosted Pakistan in 2014 in Queensland, before playing them on the road four years later in Kuala Lumpur.
Their match-ups, when they have occurred, have largely happened at World Cups, but Pakistan's presence at the tournament beyond their inaugural appearance hasn't always been guaranteed (they missed the 2000 and 2005 instalments, but have been a constant at the T20 World Cup).
What we've seen in 2022 – with the teams meeting four times over the course of the year and a bi-lateral series coming up in January 2023 – has therefore been a real opportunity for Australia and Pakistan to develop a stronger rivalry.
It had been more than three years between matches when they faced each other at the World Cup in New Zealand, before both teams partook in a T20 International Tri-Series with Northern Ireland, leading up to their debuts at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games.
From these four matches, two went the way of the Australians and the other two, in Derry, had to be abandoned due to rain.
This keeps Australia's 100 per cent winning record against Pakistan intact, but that will be tested again in early 2023, when they battle it out in three ODIs and three T20Is from January 16–29.
With games in Brisbane, Sydney, Hobart and Canberra, the world number one side are expected to triumph over the visitors – currently ranked ninth in the world for 50-over cricket and seventh in T20Is – but there is so much more at play than just a win-loss result.
As Jess Jonassen points out, the Australians understand they have a responsibility to leave the game in a better place for the next lot of women's cricketers coming through, and more interactions with a fast-developing Pakistan team is just one way to go about it.
What the Australians have to say about Pakistan ahead of the series
Jess Jonassen
"When I think about their group, they've got a lot of exciting talent coming through. There's also Fatima Sana, who's a nice little all-rounder, and Diana Baig, who's been a proven performer.
"I think this series will be exciting for them in terms of the growth of their game. Being able to bring a series over here, experience what it's like to play Australia in Australia – and not just a one-off thing – there'll be multiple games played and fingers crossed the weather is kind.
"During the Commonwealth Games, Grace Harris and I sat down with quite a few of their players and they were desperate to learn. They really wanted to improve and so we just spoke about cricket. We spoke about different training methods and those sorts of things, so I think it'll be exciting to see where they can take their game and I know with the right support and resources that over the years, they could potentially be a force to be reckoned with."
Tahlia McGrath
"The biggest challenge with Pakistan is that a lot of their bowlers offer something different than what we're used to. They've got some very crafty spinners and some explosive batters at the top.
"It's been good to play against them more than we'd usually do in recent times and so far in those matches we have had success, so we'll go into that series full of confidence.
"But looking at the opposition, Fatima Sana stands out to me. She's a very good bowler and I think she can hit a ball as well, so she's probably one to look out for and we'll have to have some solid plans in place to keep her at bay."
Annabel Sutherland
"I think it's a great chance to test ourselves against Pakistan because we potentially don't know them as well as other teams. We tend to play England and India a lot, so it's a great opportunity to learn something new and find out more about them as a team.
"I think they've done a lot of great work in the last few years to grow on the international stage. They've had David Hemp as their head coach from 2020 up until recently, who also coached me as I was coming through the Victorian system. He's done an amazing job progressing them forward and helping them find more depth, so hopefully that continues."
This article originally appeared in the ABC Cricket Magazine.
Australia vs Pakistan Fixtures
1st ODI — January 16, Allan Border Field, Brisbane
2nd ODI — January 18, Allan Border Field, Brisbane
3rd ODI — January 21, North Sydney Oval, Sydney
1st T20I — January 24, North Sydney Oval, Sydney
2nd T20I — January 26, Bellerive Oval, Hobart
3rd T20I — January 29, Manuka Oval, Canberra
