DUBAI: Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Najam Sethi on Sunday announced all three Twenty20 matches against the West Indies will be played in Karachi instead of Lahore next month.
PCB was in talks with Cricket West Indies (CWI) since last year but a final decision has been reached now.
“I can give you a good news that I have been working day and night to conclude an agreement with West Indies which I just finalized an hour ago. Good news is that West Indies will play three games, 1st, 2nd and 4th April but these matches will be played in Karachi. They will not play in Lahore but in Karachi,” Sethi told media in Dubai.
Pakistan was returning on international cricket map since last year’s final of the PSL, three T20 matches against a World XI, a Twenty20 against Sri Lanka.
They had to wait for eight years to bring international cricket back home following its suspension in 2009 when Sri Lankan team bus was attacked in Lahore. Those attacks killed eight people and left seven Sri Lankan players injured.
Karachi last hosted a Test against Sri Lanka in February 2009, a week before attacks in Lahore.
Sethi said Karachi people should welcome the decision.
“That is how we intend to put Karachi back on cricket map once again. PSL final and now three more games for Karachi as per routine. Karachi people should welcome this.”
Sethi said security experts will again travel to Karachi to clear the venue for the West Indies series.
“Reg DIckason and his men will be here during PSL final and we have contracted them to oversee the West Indies games as well. Their experts will stay back for seven days at our expense and review the security for West Indies series and this is part of our agreement with West Indies board.”
“This will be a one-off series because I told you earlier that this probably will be a loss making enterprise. The ideas wasn’t to make or lose money as it was meant to bring cricket back so this is the step in that direction.”
Sethi said there are talks on a tri-series in USA, for a period of five years.
“We have a separate agreement with the West Indies in which we are exploring a tai-lateral series including Pak, WI and one other country possibly Bangladesh but it can be some other country which will be played in USA in next five years.
“The details about the venues, dates, financial model will be discussed later but in principle it has decided that three of us will play in USA.”
