Former Pakistan all-rounder Abdul Razzaq, who is currently the head coach of domestic champions Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, considers the Men in Green favourites for the upcoming three-match T20I series against South Africa.

While speaking to Cricket Pakistan in an exclusive interview, Razzaq was optimistic about the home side’s chances ahead of the T20I series.

“I think that the squad [for T20Is] was selected on merit and the home advantage will mean that Pakistan start the series as favourites. I’m optimistic that Pakistan will win the T20I series as well,” said Razzaq.

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 He also rued absence of veteran all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez, who has been a prolific run-scorer in the shortest format of the game during the recent past.

“Hafeez was in good form but his priority was T10 League. A player of his stature should have preferred Pakistan over T10 League,” he said.

Pakistan won the recently concluded Test series against South Africa two-nil and will now move towards the T20I leg of the series which includes three fixtures that will be played at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on February 11, 13 and 14 respectively.