Zimbabwe confirm Pakistan tour to go ahead
Zimbabwe have confirmed that their tour to Pakistan, which is scheduled to start on 22 May, will go ahead despite objections from their government that it is to dangerous.
The confirmation of the tour comes after three days of confusion which saw Zimbabwe Cricket on Thursday send out a press release saying the tour was suspended only to retract their statement 20 minutes later saying they are still engaged in meetings.
The ICC, meanwhile, on Sunday also issued a media release stating that they will not appoint any match officials for the matches which includes two T20I's and three ODI's.
The statement said: The ICC today advised the PCB and ZC that it will not be appointing its match officials for the upcoming series. The ICC's decision has been made after receiving a report from its security consultant.
"The ICC Board, during its April meeting, had decided that the playing conditions relating to the appointment of match officials could be waived to allow the PCB to appoint local match officials for this series should the ICC decide not to send its umpires and referee due to the current security situation in Pakistan.
"If this was to occur, the matches would still be considered 'official cricket', even though they will not be played strictly in accordance with the ICC standard playing conditions."
Zimbabwe will be the first Full Member cricket nation to tour Pakistan since 2009 when a Sri Lanka team bus was attacked by gunman killing eight people and injuring six players from the touring squad.
The African team have been promised VIP security which includes armed guards, an armed vehicle escort and helicopter monitoring of their travel in Lahore, the only city they will visit.
Latest
-
T20 World CupGive them the finger: Virat Kohli explains India’s spin shift
Virat Kohli has defended the decision to recall Ravichandran Ashwin for the T20 World Cup.
-
T20 World CupVarun Chakravarthy ‘the main guy’ in the India bowling attack
Varun Chakravarthy could be about to dazzle the world in the UAE.
-
T20 World CupJosh Little: Ireland want to show what they are made of at T20 World Cup
The Dublin-born seamer is not afraid to ruffle feathers at the tournament
-
EnglandEbony Rainford-Brent astonished at growth of ACE diversity programme
The ACE project has branched out of south London into Birmingham and Bristol, with Manchester, Nottingham and Leeds are also being explored.
-
T20 World CupIndia players must win it for Virat Kohli says Suresh Raina
‘Do it for Virat Kohli’ is Suresh Raina’s message to India before the T20 World Cup.
-
The AshesStuart Broad: England bowlers must be ‘relentless’ in Australia
Broad believes fast-medium bowlers can thrive in the Ashes.
-
T20 World CupWilliamson hails match-winning quality on show at T20 World Cup
The Black Caps captain says that the tournament is wide open.
-
T20 World CupVirat Kohli believes MS Dhoni gives India a big edge
MS Dhoni could just be the ace up Virat Kohli’s sleeve.
-
The AshesJames Anderson warns Australia players not to cross the line with banter
Anderson asked Australia to be respectable.
-
T20 World CupT20 World Cup: Badree picks Shamsi as bowler to watch
Samuel Badree says that Tabraiz Shamsi is the number one T20I bowler in the world for a reason.