ICC security consultant Reg Dickason has said that he is ‘very very satisfied’ with the security arrangements to host the final of the third edition of the Pakistan Super League at National Stadium Karachi on March 25.
“From what we have seen today and what was demonstrated and documentation and level of commitment by all of these people here, I am very very satisfied,” Dickason said.
“It was such comprehensive, thorough and professional presentation with the efforts of all agencies including that of Najam Sethi from the Pakistan Cricket Board [PCB] and the board’s security department. It is very encouraging and it will be reflected in any subsequent report I will give to the PCB and the ICC.”
Karachi hasn’t hosted an international contest for almost a decade. The last match at the National Stadium was a Test between Pakistan and Sri Lanka, which preceded the one at Lahore that became the scene of the terror attack on the visiting side.
Hosting the final in Karachi will be extremely crucial in further normalising the return of international cricket to Pakistan, with all action since the attack on the Sri Lankan team limited to Lahore, where artificial conditions are created to ensure security.
The necessity of those arrangements notwithstanding, the expansion of host cities across Pakistan would add to the trust of foreign athletes and teams and create further normalcy for the country as a regular host for prolonged tours.
Should all go according to plan, PSL would continue to show progress in its already successful task of bringing international cricket back. While the first edition was about getting things underway, it was the final of the second that properly opened the doors for foreign cricketers – amidst tense circumstances, with last year’s final having been preceded by terror attacks.
And so playoffs in Lahore and the final in Karachi would demonstrate a continuity of the boxes being ticked, with next year bringing even more PSL games home, and in between more international teams touring Pakistan.
As far as this particular front is concerned, the success of PSL 3 would heavily depend on the foreign stars agreeing to tour Lahore and Karachi for the playoffs and the final. While they might take encouragement from the entire Peshawar Zalmi foreign contingent coming to Lahore last season, and the World XI and Sri Lanka sides that have played in Pakistan since, the foreign players would understandably need reassurances – especially, perhaps, with regards to Karachi, which despite having witnessed a turnaround in security situation hasn’t hosted an international cricket match for a while.
In this regard, the noise coming from most camps is positive. Salman Iqbal, the owner of Kings, the team from Karachi where the final would be held, said that almost all the foreign players from their squad were ready to tour.
“Six of our seven players are ready to come and play in Pakistan [from the beginning]. Eoin Morgan, who has commitments to other leagues, [is the sole exception]. He will be coming late and will be leaving early,” he said.
The same is true for Quetta Gladiators, last year’s runners-up that suffered from the absence of all their foreign stars last year and had to field a second-string line-up.
“With the sole exception of Kevin Pietersen, all the foreign players of our squad have expressed their willingness to play in Pakistan this time around. Even the flamboyant England batsman (Pietersen) may come and play in our cities,” Nadeem Omar, the Gladiators owner, said.
Similarly, one would expect other franchises to generate similar noise, with defending champions Zalmi leading the way after convincing all their international stars to tour Pakistan last year under testing conditions.
Of course, a lot would depend on the security situation in Pakistan, especially Lahore and Karachi over the next month or so as well. What is positive is that the frequency of terror attacks has significantly reduced all over the country. However, it takes one unfortunate incident to bring question marks into play.
Hence, it is important for all six PSL franchises to make sure the right vibe is on display and everyone’s gearing up for the final three matches in Pakistan. How big a hit PSL 3 turns out to be will depend on that.
