File photo of Mohsin Naqvi.© AFP
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi on Saturday brushed away reports regarding the non-availability of the venues for the upcoming home Test series against England and confirmed that the series will be in Pakistan. Earlier this week, reports surfaced on social media about a possible shift to the three-match Test series to Sri Lanka or the UAE. It was revealed that due to the ongoing renovation work at the stadiums for next year’s ICC Champions Trophy in Pakistan.
Naqvi cleared the air around such rumours and confirmed that the Tests will be held in Pakistan and told reporters, as quoted from Geo News, “No Tests will be played outside [the country]. Multan and Rawalpindi venues are final.”
In Pakistan’s recently concluded two-match Test series whitewash against Bangladesh, PCB had to shift the second Test to Rawalpindi, which was originally scheduled in Karachi. PCB had already barred the spectators from the second Test in Karachi due to the renovation work.
The decision was taken after the construction experts advised PCB that the construction could continue during the playing hours. As a result, players could get distracted and disturbed due to the noise and dust produced during the construction work.
England all-format head coach Brendon McCullum on Thursday addressed this issue while speaking to reporters at The Oval and said, “We don’t know (what is happening in Pakistan), but we can’t pick a team until we know where we’re going to play,” he said. “It would be nice if, over the next couple of days, we found out. Then we’ll sit down and make sure we’ve got the right team for the right conditions and the right opposition.”
Pakistan will host England for a three-match Test series, which is a part of the ongoing International Cricket Council (ICC) World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 cycle. The first of the three Tests will begin on October 7 in Multan. The second Test will be played in Karachi, beginning on October 15, and the third red-ball clash is in Rawalpindi on October 24.
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