NEW DELHI:
Pakistan Cricket Board
(PCB) chairman
Mohsin Naqvi
on Saturday confirmed that the upcoming home Test series against England will take place in the country, despite reports suggesting a possible shift to Sri Lanka or the UAE.
The series, which is part of the ICC World Test Championship 2023-25 cycle, will proceed as planned with matches in Multan and Rawalpindi.
Reports were doing the rounds that the series might be moved out of Pakistan due to ongoing renovation work at stadiums in preparation for next year's ICC Champions Trophy.
Naqvi quashed the reports, stating that the venues are final and games will not be played outside the country.
"No Tests will be played outside (the country). Multan and Rawalpindi venues are final," Naqvi said.
Recently, the PCB had to shift the second Test of their series against Bangladesh from Karachi to Rawalpindi because of similar renovation work.
Spectators were barred from attending that match due to the construction activities. Experts had advised that construction could continue during playing hours, potentially distracting players because of the noise and dust.
England head coach Brendon McCullum recently commented on the situation during a press interaction at The Oval. He mentioned the uncertainty about the venues and the difficulty in team selection caused by this unclear situation.
"We don't know (what is happening in Pakistan), but we can't pick a team until we know where we're going to play. It would be nice if, over the next couple of days, we found out. Then we'll sit down and make sure we've got the right team for the right conditions and the right opposition," McCullum had said.
The first Test of the three-match series between Pakistan and England is scheduled to begin on October 7 in Multan.
The second match will take place in Karachi starting October 15. The series will conclude with the third Test in Rawalpindi on October 24.
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