PCB chairman reveals West Indies tour of Pakistan itinerary; not to clash with death anniversary of ZA Bhutto

Pakistan cricket chief had recently confirmed that Karachi will host West Indies for 3 T20Is in early April. This way Pakistan cricket took a giant step towards reviving international cricket at home. PCB Chairman Najam Sethi tweeted today about the itinerary. He revealed that the matches won’t clash with the death anniversary of former Prime Minister, ZA Bhutto (April 4, 1979). Bhutto served the post from 1973 to 1977, and prior to that was the fourth President of the country (1971-1973).

Press Release

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The West Indies will play 3 T20 matches with Pakistan in National Stadium Karachi on 1st, 2nd and 3rd April 2018. The dates have been adjusted on advice of Sindh govt so that there is no match on the occasion of Barsi of ex PM Pak Mr Z A Bhutto on April 4th.

— Najam Sethi (@najamsethi) March 13, 2018

Earlier, Sethi stated, “It’s a good news that West Indies have confirmed 3 Twenty20 internationals to be played in Karachi on April 1, 2 and 4 (now changed to April 3).” Lahore was announced as the venue, but PCB was encouraged to host the matches outside Lahore after Karachi was declared safe by international security experts last month.

Under Sethi, PCB have been vocal about bringing international cricket back to Pakistan soil. Last year, World XI toured the subcontinent for three T20Is. In addition, Sri Lanka played their last T20I (of UAE tour versus Sarfraz Ahmed-led side) in Pakistan. The ongoing PSL 2018 playoffs will also be held in Lahore and the summit clash will be hosted by Karachi. Nonetheless, many foreign players — Eoin Morgan, Kevin Pietersen, Jason Roy, and Alex Hales — have made it clear to not tour the nation. Even, Kumar Sangakkara and Shane Watson are undecided as yet.