Pakistan’s Inter-provincial Coordination Minister, Ehsan-ur-Rehman Mazari, expressed concerns about the national cricket team’s security while traveling to India for the upcoming World Cup. The matter will be raised with the International Cricket Council (ICC) after a committee, chaired by Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and set up by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, made the decision.
Pakistan has requested ICC’s guarantee for the team’s safety during the tournament, and they also have reservations about some World Cup venues, which will be presented to the ICC for review.
Bilateral cricket between Pakistan and India has been halted due to political relations, and matches have only taken place in multi-team events at neutral venues in the last decade. The much-awaited World Cup fixtures revealed a highly anticipated match between Pakistan and India scheduled for mid-October in Ahmedabad, but the PCB needs government clearance for any tour to India, including match venues.
If allowed, the match will take place in front of 132,000 spectators at the Narendra Modi Stadium, the world’s largest cricketing venue. The World Cup is scheduled from October 5 to November 19.
