It seems like Pakistani cricket fans have to make do with one bad news after the other. Recently, Umar Akmal’s suspension and Hasan Ali’s back injury that has put him out of commission disheartened the fans. Now, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has announced that Pakistan’s Tour of Ireland has been postponed as well.
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and Cricket Ireland (CI) have come to the decision to postpone the two match T20 series. The matches were scheduled to be played in July. After the foreign government announced that behind-closed-door matches will only be played after August 10, this decision was bound to be made.
Pakistan – Ireland Series
The Pakistan Tour of Ireland was planned with two matches to be played on 12th and 14th July. The Pakistani cricket team was supposed to leave for Ireland in late June. PCB Chief Executive, Wasim Khan said:
“It is sad that due the current COVID-19 pandemic, we have to postpone our tour to Ireland. We were looking forward to returning to the venue — where we featured against Ireland in their inaugural Test in 2018 — and country where our players have always been supported and admired by the friendly and knowledgeable fans.”
Khan also mention: “As we have all reiterated, the safety and security of players, officials, and fans comes first.”
The CEO of Cricket Ireland said on the matter, “With the Irish Government’s announcement on May 1 regarding the gradual process of lifting restrictions here in Ireland, it unfortunately became impossible to host the Pakistan T20Is in Dublin on the scheduled dates.”
“We deeply regret this, as the cricketing bonds between Ireland and Pakistan are strong, and we were very excited to host the world’s top T20 side. We look forward to a time when we can once again meet on the pitch and wish our Pakistan Cricket Board colleagues good health during these challenging times,” the CI CEO added.
Apart from the postponed Pakistani tour, Ireland also has to cancel their series with New Zealand. In fact, New Zealand’s entire European tour has been postponed for the time being.
