New Zealand Cricket (NZC) has turned down the Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) invitation play three Twenty20 International games in Pakistan.
New Zealand’s series against Pakistan in October, which consists of three Tests, three ODIs and three T20Is, will instead take place in UAE, Pakistan’s adopted home venue since 2009.
“At the end of the day, it came down to following the advisory and the security reports we’d obtained. There’s no doubt they (PCB) are disappointed,” NZC chairman Greg Barclay told Newshub according to a Cricbuzz report.
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“I think they saw a tour by a country like New Zealand as being a great precedent for them to start to build an international programme back in Pakistan. So they’re disappointed but they’re good guys, we get on really well with Pakistan, and I think they’re fully accepting of the decision that we’ve reached,” he added.
“We’re very sympathetic to the plight they find themselves in, we’re a member of the ICC, we’re very aware that the ICC are trying to facilitate more international cricket in Pakistan and we’re very supportive of that. But all circumstances considered, we just decided circumstances weren’t right for us to tour at the moment.”
{{/usCountry}}“We’re very sympathetic to the plight they find themselves in, we’re a member of the ICC, we’re very aware that the ICC are trying to facilitate more international cricket in Pakistan and we’re very supportive of that. But all circumstances considered, we just decided circumstances weren’t right for us to tour at the moment.”
{{/usCountry}}‘Comfortable with decision’
Pakistan have been largely starved of international cricket since a terror attack took place on the Sri Lankan team bus in 2009. However, Zimbabwe had toured the country in 2015, playing 3 ODIs and 2 T20Is.
In September last year, a World XI side led by Faf Du Plessis played 3 T20Is and a second-string West Indies side also played 3 T20Is in 2018.
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However, Greg Barclay stated that New Zealand went through a “very thorough” process before taking the call to not tour Pakistan.
“I can’t comment on the decision process that the West Indies went through, perhaps some of the timings may have been different as well. I just know that we went through a very thorough process and I’m comfortable with the decision that we got to,” he said.