CWI, PCB to meet on West Indies tour of Pakistan

CRICKET West Indies will be meeting with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Tuesday with regards to the proposed West Indies tour of Pakistan in December.

The West Indies are expected to play three One Day Internationals (ODIs) and three T20 Internationals during their tour of Pakistan.

On Friday, New Zealand pulled out of the tour of Pakistan, minutes before the start of the first ODI in Rawalpindi, citing security concerns. New Zealand were slated to play three ODIs and five T20Is against the Pakistanis.

And, on Monday, England opted out of their men's and women's tour of Pakistan – the English men were set to play two T20 Internationals while the women were due to play two T20Is and three ODIs.

Asked on Monday about the proposed WI tour of Pakistan, CWI CEO Johnny Grave, in a Whatsapp message, replied, "(we're) speaking to the PCB (on Tuesday)."

The West Indies hosted Pakistan in July and August, for two Test matches (the series ended 1-1) and four T20Is (Pakistan won the rain-affected series 1-0).

Teams have been reluctant to tour Pakistan since the March 3, 2009 terror attack on the visiting Sri Lankan team, who were on their way to the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore for the third day of the second Test. Six members of the Sri Lanka team were wounded while six Pakistani policemen and two civilians were killed.

A second-string West Indies team, led by Jason Mohammed, toured Pakistan for three T2OIs in April 2018, with the hosts sweeping the series.

In a recent Cricinfo report, Afghanistan indicated their desire to play the West Indies and Australia in a T20I tri-series, ahead of next month's T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Oman.

Grave said, "no news from the ACB (Afghanistan Cricket Board). We are planning to head to the UAE in early October to (go) through our mandatory six days quarantine, before having a few days training ahead of the ICC support period, and our two warm-up games against India and Pakistan."

Due to the covid19 pandemic, the West Indies have not held a first-class competition since February 2020.

Asked about plans for a Regional Four-Day competition, and Super50 Cup, in 2022, Grave responded, "(There will be a) Board Meeting next Thursday to outline plans for (the) 2022 regional schedule. All Senior Executive Management will be attending."