The Pakistan government has approved the travel to India of its national cricket team for this autumn’s ODI World Cup in India. The Pakistan government has however placed on record the security concerns it has for the team during the tournament.
A statement from the Pakistan foreign office read: “Pakistan has consistently maintained that sports should not be mixed with politics. It has, therefore, decided to send its cricket team to India to participate in the Cricket World Cup.
“Pakistan believes that the state of bilateral relations with India should not stand in the way of fulfilling its international sports-related obligations.
“Pakistan’s decision shows its constructive and responsible approach vis-a-vis India’s intransigent attitude, as the latter had refused to send its cricket team to Pakistan for the Asia Cup.”
The foreign ministry statement issued Sunday (August 6) further reads: “Pakistan has deep concerns about the security of its cricket team. We are conveying these concerns to the International Cricket Council (ICC) and the Indian authorities. We expect that the full safety and security of the Pakistan cricket team will be ensured during its visit to India.”
Pakistan’s matches are slated to take place in Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, and Kolkata. As per the existing schedule, their inaugural match is against the Netherlands in Hyderabad, with a highly anticipated match against India in Ahmedabad, likely on October 14.
The World Cup is set to begin on October 5 with a rematch of the 2019 final as England take on New Zealand, and conclude on November 19.
