After NZ, England call off tour to Pak
LONDON: England have withdrawn both the men’s and women’s teams from next month’s tour of Pakistan, the England and Wales Cricket Board said on Monday, three days after New Zealand abandoned their tour of the country amid security concerns.
In an elaborate statement, ECB explained its decision.“the ECB has a longstanding commitment to tour Pakistan as part of the Men’s Future Tours Programme in 2022. Earlier this year, we agreed to play two additional T20 World Cup warm-up games in Pakistan in October, adding a short women’s tour with double headers alongside the men’s games.
“The ECB Board convened this weekend to discuss these extra games in Pakistan and we can confirm that the Board has reluctantly decided to withdraw both teams.
“We know there are increasing concerns about travelling to the region and believe that going ahead will add further pressure to a playing group who have already coped with a long period of operating in restricted Covid environments. There is the added complexity for our Men’s T20 squad. We believe that touring under these conditions will not be ideal preparation for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, where performing well remains a top priority for 2021.” ECB apologised to the Pakistan board and said it is committed to the 2022 tour.
The England men and women’s teams were each scheduled to play two T20s on Oct. 13 and 14 in Rawalpindi, with the women’s side due to stay on for a three-match ODI series from Oct. 17-21.
After a decade spent trying to woo back cricket’s international elite, Pakistan is facing the prospect of being declared the game’s no-go area again, and the anger is palpable. A sense of deja vu swept the country on Friday when New Zealand abruptly pulled the plug on their first Pakistan tour in 18 years, citing a security alert.
It is a massive setback for the cricket-mad nation, whose board expressed dismay before ECB’S announcement.
“It’s been pretty gut-wrenching,” PCB chief executive Wasim Khan told a virtual news conference on Sunday. “We’ve done a huge amount of work in building our credibility back up again in world cricket. The rug has been pulled out from under our feet as quick as that.”
Cricket Australia said it was monitoring the situation and would “talk with the relevant authorities once more information becomes known” ahead of its scheduled tour in early 2022.
“The abrupt departure of New Zealand has left many scars for us, and we just certainly hope that this is not going to have long-term consequences for us,” added Khan.
With the Taliban sweeping to power in neighbouring Afghanistan, Pakistan will have to work extra hard to try and convince other teams to tour the country.
Shunned by all after the deadly 2009 attack on the Sri Lanka team bus in Lahore, Pakistan’s ‘home’ matches in the UAE have been played without fans and earned PCB little in revenue. Pakistan has no plans to again move home games offshore, says Khan. Test cricket returned to Pakistan when Sri Lanka returned in 2019 but PCB officials know Pakistan will only be deemed safe when the likes of England and Australia tour.