Cricket Australia rejects PCB’s request to play in Pakistan

The Cricket Australia (CA) has said that it has no plans of sending its team to Pakistan to play against the Green Shirts in three Tests and a T20 match in September and October, which were initially scheduled to be held in UAE later this year.

"The safety and security of Australian players is our number one priority," a CA spokesman said, quoted Australian Associated Press. Australia hasn't played in Pakistan since 1998.

"From the Australia team's perspective, we are not contemplating moving our current bilateral-tour arrangements from taking on Pakistan in the Middle East, when they host the next series," he said.

The statement comes after reports that Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Najam Sethi and COO Subhan Ahmad have held talks with the Australian and New Zealand officials. The PCB had also requested the boards to move the T20 match to Pakistan, following in the footsteps of Sri Lanka and the West Indies in the past year.

“The two boards have been requested to play the T20 matches of their series in Pakistan to help support the PCB in bringing back international cricket to the country,” an official had said.

Before the Sri Lankan team’s visit in late October, the PCB also hosted the ICC World Eleven for a three-match T20 series in Lahore while last month Pakistan played three T20 matches in Karachi against the West Indies.