The Pakistan Cricket Board finds the visit of Afghanistan cricket team against Pakistan A as a healthy sign for the revival of cricket in the country. In a message, PCB chairman Ijaz Butt welcomed the visitors in Pakistan and praised the progress they made at international level. “The progress they have shown in recent years is commendable.
They have turned out to be a fine team and we expect some good cricket in their matches against Pakistan A,” he added. PCB chairman, said: “The visit of Afghanistan team is a good sign for the game in Pakistan.” “Unfortunately, our cricket frenzy nation is being deprived of international cricket at home. Capacity-filled stadiums in domestic tournaments reflect how dear this game is for them,” he said. “The PCB, in difficult times, has tried to keep the momentum going by concentrating more on domestic cricket and creating opportunities for the national team to play their home series at alternative venues,” he added. “For the Afghanistan team tour, the PCB has tried to ensure highest-level security and I thank the government for its support,” he added.
The Afghanistan cricket team is playing three One dayers with Pakistan A on May 25, 27 and 29 in Islamabad, Rawalpindi and Faisalabad respectively “We want to send a message to the world that Pakistan is a safe place to play cricket and the people of Pakistan would welcome any team coming here. I take this opportunity to thank the Afghanistan Government and Afghanistan Cricket Board for sending their team. I hope this tour will pave the way for more such visits by foreign teams to Pakistan,” he maintained.
Afghanistan team arrived here to play the series at a time when just two day back terrorists attacked the Naval Base at Karachi for 16 hours killing at least 10 persons and injuring around 19. Pakistan has been under terror attacks for the last one decade and no sign of its receding are visible.
