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The past few days have not gone well for Afghanistan. The Taliban has taken over the country and there are a lot of uncertainties around the nation. Cricket has brought the people of Afghanistan together and has given them something to be happy about. However, with things changing, cricket also seems to have taken a pause in the country. The Afghanistan Cricket Board and the Pakistan Cricket Board had decided to play a bilateral series in September. But, as things are not normal in Afghanistan, the PCB looks a bit hesitant and is looking for assurance from the ACB.
In the latest development, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has decided to hold back the squad announcement and training camp ahead of the One-Day series against Afghanistan. Pakistan players were scheduled to start their training camp from Sunday in Lahore, but the board has put it on hold and wants confirmation from the Afghanistan Cricket Board whether the series is on and only then, they will announce their squad. A PCB official said that Afghanistan cricket authorities are yet to confirm when their players will leave Kabul for Colombo and also the full schedule.“Once they give us the complete series travel plans and itinerary, we will have the camp and also release our squad,” he said.
As reports state, the ACB is in talks with the Taliban authorities and US troops who are controlling all flights in and out of Kabul. A senior ACB official has assured them that they will soon get the permission and other details. Earlier, the Sri Lanka Cricket board had accepted ACB's request to host the series on their behalf. Both the teams were set to lock horns from September 3 in Hambantota in Sri Lanka.
Pakistan looking to rest senior players
Reports suggest that the PCB is looking to rest its senior players to manage their workload. Team captain Babar Azam, wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammad Rizwan, pacer Shaheen Afridi, and Hasan Ali can be rested for the upcoming series.
If the series goes on as planned, this will be the first bilateral series between the two Asian countries. Pakistan PM Imran Khan is supposed to be behind this as he was requested by Mohammad Nabi for the same.