Summary All hopes of international cricket die as terrorists force Zimbabwe to cancel its tour to Pakistan
LAHORE: (Dunya News) – To add insult to the injury inflicted by Karachi tragedy over the nation, Zimbabwe cricket team’s Pakistan tour has been cancelled on Thursday according to sources and with the cancellation have died all hopes of return of cricket to Pakistan, reported Dunya News.
According to Chaimran PCB Shehryar Khan, Zimbabwe’s cricket board has also not yet confirmed cancellation of the tour though.
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) made whatever efforts it could to woo Zimbabwe into playing cricket in Pakistan in what could have been an opening to the return of international cricket to Pakistan after 6 years. However, the security situation in Pakistan and the recent terrorist attack in Karachi have convinced Zimbabwe to cancel the tour, said sources.
According to Dunya News sources, Zimbabwe government has informed Pakistan’s Foreign Office about its concerns regarding team’s security in Pakistan. Sources told Dunya News that Zimbabwe government has not issued the No Objection Certificate (NOC) to its cricket team for Pakistan tour.
It is pertinent to mention here that Zimbabwe team had to arrive in Pakistan on May 19 to play 2 T-20 and 3 One-Day Internationals (ODI).
Meanwhile, talking to a private TV channel, former Pakistan captain Rameez Raja has severely criticized Zimbabwe’s decision to pull out of the tour. He said that Pakistan has perfect conditions for international cricket and the Zimbabwe government has taken the decision in haste. He said that the decision was extremely depressing.
Former Test cricketer Zaheer Abbas said on this occasion that Pakistan is going through a tough time and the world should lend its support to Pakistan at this critical juncture.
Earlier, Chairman PCB Shehryar Khan had expressed fears while talking to media at Gaddafi Stadium Lahore of Zimbabwe pulling out of the tournament in view of the Karachi tragedy.
