Tag: England tour to Pakistan

  • Rizwan gifted shoes to young player when he bowled him out

    Rizwan gifted shoes to young player when he bowled him out

    Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter Muhammad Rizwan gifted his spiked shoes to a young player when he bowled him out during a practice session ahead of the Pakistan-England Test series.

    In a video —which has been trending on social media—the young man said that Rizwan told the younger players that whoever gets his wicket, will be given a gift.

    The man said that he got Rizwan’s wicket and was later gifted a pair of shoes by him.

    This is not the first time that Rizwan has been generous. Earlier, he gifted his jersey to an Indian doctor who cured him when his health deteriorated during T20 World Cup 2020.

    Last month, the wicketkeeper completed 2500 runs in T20Is and became only the third Pakistani after Muhammad Hafeez and Babar Azam to do so.

    Rizwan will be seen in action during Pakistan’s upcoming Test series against England in December. The first match of the series will be played in Rawalpindi.

  • ‘Made zero sense to me’: Alex Hales on England cancelling Pakistan tour

    ‘Made zero sense to me’: Alex Hales on England cancelling Pakistan tour

    England’s opening batter Alex Hales has criticised the English Cricket Board for cancelling their scheduled tour to Pakistan last year, saying that the cancellation made zero sense to him.

    Hales, who last represented England in 2019, is currently playing for Islamabad United in the seventh edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL). He said that Pakistan helped England in challenging times during the pandemic but the ECB did not reciprocate.

    “Pakistan came to England during Covid, helped out the ECB massively, so for them to cancel that tour made absolutely zero sense to me whatsoever,” he said.

    Hales, who has toured the country numerous times, said ‘it’s a great place to come and play cricket’, and also lauded the hospitality and passion of the people.

    “I have been here four or five times now and get looked after really well,” he said.

    “Every time we come here, the people are very hospitable and the cricket is always really good. The fans here are crazy for it. So it’s a great place to come and play cricket,” he added.

    It is should be noted that both England’s men’s and women’s sides were set to play two T20Is, with the latter staying on for three ODIs in September 2021.

    The ECB cited protecting ‘the mental and physical well-being’ of its players and staff as well as “increasing concerns about travelling to the region” as reasons for opting out in a statement explaining the cancellation.

    Earlier, it was announced that England will play two additional Twenty20s during their tour to Pakistan this year. England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) Chief Executive Tom Harrison promised in his tour to Pakistan.

  • Shaniera Akram tells Australia, England what they should be worried about when touring Pakistan

    Shaniera Akram tells Australia, England what they should be worried about when touring Pakistan

    Shaniera Akram, who is a humanitarian, environmentalist and wife of legendary Pakistani cricketer Wasim Akram, has told Australian and English cricket teams what they should be worried about when touring Pakistan.

    Taking to Twitter, Shaniera wrote: “The only thing Australia & England should be worried about when coming to play cricket in Pakistan is The Pakistan Cricket Team!”

    “Thank you @CricketAus and @ECB_cricket for this opportunity,” she wrote, adding, “Like we always do, Pakistan & @TheRealPCB will welcome both teams with open arms & hearts!”

    Australian and English Boards have announced a visit to Pakistan. Yesterday, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Ramiz Raja met England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) Chief Executive and Deputy Chairman. The series was discussed. Two additional matches were also announced after the meeting.

    The schedule of Australia’s visit to Pakistan has also been released two days ago, this will be Australia’s first visit to Pakistan after 1998.

    Fans are eager to know whether Shaniera, who lives in Pakistan but is of Australian origin, will be supporting Pakistan or Australia during the T20 World Cup semi-final.

    “Million dollar question: I’m deeply interested in knowing that who would @iamShaniera Bhabhi be supporting at #PAKVSAUS in the 2nd #SemiFinal of #T20WorldCup?” asked Twitter user Samra Tariq.

    At this, Shaniera did not give a clear response.

    “I want to know from all of you ??? Which team do you guys think I will cheer for???” Shaniera said.

    Pakistan will face Australia in the semi-final in Dubai on November 11. Pakistan remained undefeated in the Super 12 and ended the stage on a high.

  • ECB chief Tom Harrison flies to Pakistan in bid to repair relations between England cricket and PCB

    ECB chief Tom Harrison flies to Pakistan in bid to repair relations between England cricket and PCB

    England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) chief executive Tom Harrison will meet with Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan, as well as Chairman Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Ramiz Raja, in a bid to repair relations with Pakistan in the wake of last month’s cancelled T20I tour.

    Read More – New Zealand cancels Pak series due to ‘security concerns’ despite PM Khan’s call to NZ PM

    Officials at the PCB were enraged when England pulled out of the two-match tour at short notice a few weeks ago.

    Now Harrison has flown in to assure Ramiz, the new chairman of the PCB, that England remain committed to their Test tour of the country at the end of 2022. England have not toured Pakistan since late 2005.

    He is also set to meet with PM Khan, Pakistan’s greatest allrounder and World Cup-winning captain, prior to his move into politics, who also serves as patron-in-chief of the PCB.

    Speaking in the wake of the cancelled T20I tour, which followed hot on the heels of New Zealand’s abandonment of their own tour on the morning of their opening ODI in Rawalpindi, Ramiz hit out at what he called cricket’s “western bloc”, and said that the PCB would be making contingency plans to protect their home itinerary in the event of another England pull-out next year.

    Reportedly, Harrison’s trip is only expected to last a couple of days. He is due in the UAE later in the week as the ICC hold their first in-person chief executives’ meeting since the start of the pandemic.

    The news came after Cricket Australia announced its plans for a three-Test, three-ODI and one T20I tour in March-April 2022. If it goes ahead as planned, it will be their first tour of the country since 1998.

  • ‘Selfishness, treachery of English cricket’, Peter Oborne schools ECB after Pak win

    ‘Selfishness, treachery of English cricket’, Peter Oborne schools ECB after Pak win

    English author and journalist Peter Oborne, who is very vocal about the mistreatment of Pakistan cricket by the International Cricket Council (ICC) and other cricket boards, has schooled the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) after they made a joke on their Twitter account about India and Pakistan match.

    “Not your typical Monday morning! How are you feeling in one word,” ECB posted on Twitter with a smiling face.

    Replying to the English board, Peter wrote: “I am thinking Pakistan pulled off their great victory last night despite their preparation schedule being cruelly disrupted by the selfishness and treachery of English cricket.”

    Earlier, the English author had assailed the English Board for calling off their tour of Pakistan, terming the decision “a kick in the teeth” of Pakistan, to whom English cricket owed a great deal.

    New Zealand also abandoned their tour minutes before the opening fixture in Rawalpindi following a “security alert” from their government.

    The England men’s and women’s teams were each scheduled to play two Twenty20 international matches on October 13 and 14 in Rawalpindi, with the women’s side due to stay on for a three-match One-day International series from Oct 17-21.

    The historic trip would have been the first ever by an England women’s team and the first by their male counterparts since 2005.

  • ‘ICC a politicised body, we need to reduce our dependence on it’: Ramiz Raja

    ‘ICC a politicised body, we need to reduce our dependence on it’: Ramiz Raja

    Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Ramiz Raja has disclosed that 50 per cent of the board’s budget is based around the funds it gets from the International Cricket Council (ICC) whose “revenues are generated mainly from India”.

    Appearing before the Senate Standing Committee on Inter-Provincial affairs on Thursday in Islamabad, Ramiz said it was time for PCB to reduce its dependence on funding from the ICC and start tapping the local market.

    “ICC is a politicised body divided between the Asian and Western blocs and 90 per cent of its revenues are generated from India,” the PCB Chairman said.

    Ramiz said the ICC had become more of an event management company and PCB would have to make its voice heard if it does not want a repeat of the cancellation of confirmed series by New Zealand and England.

    What New Zealand did was unacceptable because till now they have not shared any information with us on what led them to abandon the series in Pakistan. But they are now trying to reschedule the series, he said.

    Ramiz hinted of some good news regarding the postponed New Zealand series in a week’s time.

    He indicated that the New Zealand cricket board was working on a new schedule to tour Pakistan.

    Read More – Ramiz Raja ‘erroneously’ tweets about ECB chairman’s resignation, deletes later

    Senator Raza Rabbani suggested that Pakistan should now not play against New Zealand and refuse any series but Ramiz pointed out that this would not be possible as Pakistan was part of the international cricket community.

    The good thing is that they are working on something, which means they want to amend things with us, he said.

    The New Zealand cricket team had arrived in Pakistan on September 11 for the first time in 18 years to play three ODIs and five Twenty20 Internationals but left on September 19 without playing any match after their government and security agencies advised them to return home citing “security concerns”.

    Ramiz, in a candid briefing to the senators, also made it clear that he would unveil his plans for Pakistan cricket and the board in a week or 10-days’ time while in four weeks’ time he would have his team ready.

    Read More – New Zealand cricket chief open to rescheduling of abandoned Pakistan series

    “To me, it is simple if the national team cannot do well and win matches, it means that everyone in the board from the tea man to the top official have failed in their duties,” he said.

  • ‘They would not have done this to India’: Holding criticises ECB’s decision over not touring Pakistan

    ‘They would not have done this to India’: Holding criticises ECB’s decision over not touring Pakistan

    Former West Indies pacer Michael Holding has strongly criticised England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) over the cancellation of the scheduled tour of Pakistan, saying it smacks of ‘western arrogance’.

    “What that signal sends to me is the same western arrogance,” said Holding while receiving Peter Smith Award.

    Read More – ‘Mujhe afsos hai, England’s tour not cancelled over security’: British High Commissioner

    “I will treat you how I feel like treating you – it doesn’t matter what you think, I will just do what I want.”

    “Four days in Pakistan [was all they would have spent], I am absolutely sure they would not have done that to India.”

    “You know why? Because India is rich and powerful. I am in total agreement with Mike Atherton and [cricket writer] George Dobell, who wrote articles condemning England and the ECB,” he added.

    Holding reminded ECB about Pakistan’s last tour of England during Covid-19 peak.

    The former cricketer further said: “They were going for four days. Pakistan went to England [in 2020] before vaccines were available for six, seven weeks, something like that. They stayed, they played their cricket, they were in that bubble.”

    Read More – ‘Decision of England board is cowardly, was made out of fear of the players and India’: British author

    “I was in that bubble and it wasn’t fantastic but it was better than going out into society, where we know Covid was and without any vaccinations available to anyone.”

    “They stayed, they played, and honoured what England wanted them to honour, and now you have an opportunity to try and repay them to a small degree,” he concluded.

  • ‘Mujhe afsos hai, England’s tour not cancelled over security’: British High Commissioner

    ‘Mujhe afsos hai, England’s tour not cancelled over security’: British High Commissioner

    British High Commissioner to Pakistan Christian Turner on Tuesday termed Pakistan as a safe country, saying that the England cricket team’s tour was not cancelled over security concerns.

    Speaking on ARY News programme, ‘Off The Record’, with Kashif Abbasi, the British High Commissioner dispelled an impression that the tour of the England team was cancelled over security concerns.

    Turner assured that the England team would tour Pakistan next year as they only had three matches scheduled for the now-cancelled tour in 2021. “Our players had been playing PSL and other leagues in Pakistan,” he said while once again reiterating that security was not the reason behind the cancellation of the tour.

    While appreciating Pakistan cricket team’s recent tour to England, he lauded the national team’s players for being a true and passionate ambassador of the game of cricket.

    Earlier, Turner also took to Twitter and released a video in which he expressed his sadness, saying that he is upset that the English board, “which is independent of the British government”, called off men and women’s tour of Pakistan in October.

    “The British High Commission supported the tour, did not advise against it on security grounds; and our travel advice for Pakistan has not changed,” he said.

    While talking to Muneeb Farooq, on Geo News‘ programme ‘Capital Talk’, the British High Commissioner said that from day one of his appointment, he is working for building the image of Pakistan and he has also changed the travel advisory for the country.

    “Not only with PCB, but I am also working with the ECB [England and Wales Cricket Board] for this day,” he added.

    He also said that this is not the story of people taking Pakistan down or any security issue, it is about the ECB and the players taking decision, and we must all work hard to change those perceptions and return to that day when cricket will return to Pakistan.

  • England tour of Pakistan 2021 schedule announced, Rawalpindi to host both series

    England tour of Pakistan 2021 schedule announced, Rawalpindi to host both series

    England men’s and women’s teams will travel to Pakistan for a bilateral series. Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium will be hosting both the series.

    Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), on Friday, announced that the England men’s team will take on the home side in two T20Is at the Pindi Cricket Stadium in Rawalpindi in October. The England women’s team will also play two T20Is and three ODIs against the Pakistan women’s team during the same month at the same venue.

    The England men and women’s teams will arrive in Islamabad on October 9. Subsequently, the touring sides will play the T20Is on October 13 and 14, with the matches being held as double-headers. After the completion of the T20I series, the England men’s squad will leave for Dubai on October 15.

    However, the England women’s side will stay back and partake in three ODIs on October 17,19 and 21 respectively. This will be England senior team’s (men or women) first tour to Pakistan since 2005-06. Incidentally, the matches were initially scheduled to be played at the National Stadium in Karachi on October 14 and 15, but had to be rescheduled as a result of “operational and logistical reasons”.

    “We are delighted to welcome both the England men’s team for what will be their first tour to Pakistan since 2005, and the England women’s team, who will be touring Pakistan for the first time. Both are additional tours with England men’s side scheduled to return to Pakistan in the last quarter of 2022 for white-ball and ICC World Test Championship fixtures,” PCB Chief Executive Wasim Khan said.