Pakistan Cricket Board Confirms T20 Tri-Series To Proceed In Lahore Despite Afghanistan Pullout

Lahore: Despite the pull out by Afghanistan, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said on Saturday that the three-nation T20I tournament will be held on schedule from November 17 to 29 in Lahore.

A senior PCB official said they are in talks with a few other boards to replace Afghanistan in the tri-series in which Sri Lanka is the third side.

“The Tri-Series will progress as scheduled even after Afghanistan’s withdrawal. We are looking at a replacement team and once finalised, the announcement will be made. The Tri-Series features a third team in Sri Lanka so it is on from 17th November,” he said.

The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) has announced that it would not be sending its team to Pakistan for the tournament, citing the tragic death of three cricketers which it claimed occurred in Pakistan’s air strikes in Paktika province.

Afghanistan has had no bilateral series with Pakistan since getting Test status although its A teams frequently visited the country before their recognition by the International Cricket Council and many Afghan players also trained in the country.

At one time, Pakistan had also allowed Afghanistan cricketers to play in their domestic events.

A reliable source said that the international cricket department of the PCB was currently even looking at associate member teams including Nepal and UAE as replacements for Afghanistan, but their priority is to get a Test playing nation to participate in the tri-series.

Pakistan will also host Sri Lanka for a three-match bilateral T20 series from November 11 to 15.

Pakistan’s relation with Afghanistan has remained tense for a while now and even though they hosted a tri-series, also featuring the UAE in Sharjah, prior to the Asia Cup.

Pakistani and Afghani spectators were seated in different enclosures to avoid clashes.

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