There was a lot of speculation surrounding around Pakistan’s upcoming tour to England. And the PCB on Saturday (May 16) confirmed that Pakistan will visit England in July to play three Tests and three T20 internationals in a bio-secure environment.
According to a PTI report, PCB chief executive Wasim Khan told a news channel that the board has agreed "in principle" to go ahead with the tour.
"We had a very detailed and comprehensive discussion with the ECB on Friday regarding the tour and PCB has now agreed in principle to send our cricket team to England in July," Wasim said.
During the discussions held via video link with the ECB officials, it was agreed that Pakistan would play the matches behind closed doors.
The PCB chief said the touring party comprised of 25 cricketers will travel to England on four chartered flights in the first week of July and the series will be held in empty stadiums after the players have completed their quarantine periods.
Wasim Khan said he will brief Test captain Azhar Ali and ODI and T20 captain Babar Azam regarding the tour next week, adding that the health and safety of players would be paramount and no player would be forced to go to England.
"If a player doesn't want to go, we will accept their decision and take no disciplinary action," Khan said, adding, however, that based on his information, every player wants to join the tour.
He also spoke about the expected venues for the Test series.
"Manchester and Southampton will be the likely venues for the Test series and the ECB will announce a third venue soon," Wasim said.
"Biosecurity arrangements will be made by the host country and medical staff will remain with our team throughout the tour. We will test all our players and regular temperature checks will be ensured. It's very important that cricket is revived during these challenging times," he added.
Notably, cricket boards across the globe are exploring options to play the upcoming series because of the financial crisis being experienced in the wake of game's suspension due to COVID-19 pandemic.
It has been over two months since any form of international cricket was last played.
(With PTI inputs)
