Australia tour to Pakistan delayed and shortened
KARACHI (Reuters) - Pakistan and Australia have agreed to delay their bilateral series and shorten it to a month after officials met in Kuala Lumpur to discuss security concerns expressed by the Australians about playing in Pakistan.
Australia had been scheduled to tour from March 10, playing three tests, five one-day internationals and a twenty20 match.
However, a joint statement by both cricket boards on Tuesday said: "Subject to the appropriate security clearance, and by mutual consent, the tour would be compressed and will be played tentatively between March 29 and April 27".
Cricket Australia (CA) will send a security delegation to Pakistan in early March to assess the venues and security arrangements, the statement added.
"I am glad that we had very open and fruitful discussions with CA where we were assured that CA was committed to touring Pakistan," said Shafqat Naghmi, chief operating officer of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
CA official James Sutherland added: "We remain committed to tour Pakistan this March and April. The PCB's preparedness to take a flexible approach to this tour is much appreciated.
"This delay will certainly assist us to better assess the post-election situation in Pakistan,"
The statement said the details of the revised tour itinerary would be finalised next week.
General elections were held in Pakistan on Monday in a largely peaceful and orderly manner with opposition parties securing large numbers of seats.
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Australia tour to Pakistan delayed and shortened
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