ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Friday ordered Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali to send a team to India to assess measures adopted for Pakistani cricketers’ security for the World T20.
A decision on Pakistan’s participation in the World T20, being hosted by India from March 8 to April 3, hinges on a clearance report by the security team, read a statement released from the premier’s office.
A final decision on whether Pakistan’s cricket team will fly to India will be made after a report is submitted by the security team, said the statement.
In a meeting with Ch Nisar at the Prime Minister’s House, Nawaz directed him to ensure ‘fool proof security measures for the team in coordination with the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi’.
The development came after the chief minister of the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh, Virbhadra Singh, called for the India-Pakistan World T20 tie to be moved to another venue ‘out of respect for those killed in the assault by militants on an Indian air force base in Pathankot’.
He threatened not to provide security for Pakistan’s players at the Himachal Pradesh cricket ground in the Himalayan town of Dharamsala where the clash is due to take place on March 19.
But on Thursday, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Anurag Thakur was optimistic that the match will go ahead as per schedule. He had a meeting with Singh and was positive that the state government would not have any reservations in hosting the much-anticipated encounter.
Earlier on March 2, the interior minister expressed concern over Indian response on the security and linked the team’s tour with assurance for the same.
On February 29, PCB chairman Shaharyar Khan said they had conveyed concerns regarding team’s security to the ICC.
The statement issued by the prime minister also sought a report from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on the team’s dismal performance in the Asia Cup T20.
Earlier in the day, the PCB took on board Test captain Misbah-ul-Haq and veteran batsman Younis Khan to examine Pakistan’s disastrous Asia Cup T20 campaign and the ‘confused’ team selection for the World T20.
PCB chief Shaharyar Khan slammed the team’s performance but said that it was too late to make sweeping changes ahead of the World Cup.
Pakistan lost to arch rival India and host Bangladesh, and only managed to beat United Arab Emirates, raising serious doubts about their potential to challenge for the title in the tournament.
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