The England and Wales cricket board (ECB) decided not to tour Pakistan by citing their player’s mental well-being as one of the defining parts behind their decision.
The ECB released a statement on Monday that says they are pulling out their men and women tour of Pakistan, which was scheduled in October.
This decision was taken after New Zealand abandoned their first tour to Pakistan in 18 years based on security threats.
“Earlier this year, we agreed to play two additional T20 World Cup warm-up games in Pakistan in October, adding a short women’s tour with double headers alongside the men’s games,”
an official ECB statement said.
“The ECB Board convened this weekend to discuss these extra England Women’s and Men’s games in Pakistan and we can confirm that the Board has reluctantly decided to withdraw both teams from the October trip.”
England was in a doubting after the Black Caps canceled their tour of Pakistan just before the toss of the opening match.
After a Board meeting, ECB had to decide that they would not tour Pakistan in this situation because their players had already been under a lot of stress due to Covid-19 and bio-bubble environments on recent tours.
“The mental and physical well-being of our players and support staff remains our highest priority and this is even more critical given the times we are currently living in. We know there are increasing concerns about traveling to the region and believe that going ahead will add further pressure to a playing group who have already coped with a long period of operating in restricted Covid environments.
“There is the added complexity for our Men’s T20 squad. We believe that touring under these conditions will not be ideal preparation for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, where performing well remains a top priority for 2021.
The England Cricket Board went on to apologize to the Pakistan Cricket Board for the pullout and offered their sincere apologies for their tough decision.
England’s walk is a massive setback for Pakistan and its fans.
“We understand that this decision will be a significant disappointment to the PCB, who have worked tirelessly to host the return of international cricket in their country. Their support of English and Welsh cricket over the last two summers has been a huge demonstration of friendship. We are sincerely sorry for the impact this will have on cricket in Pakistan and emphasize an ongoing commitment to our main touring plans there for 2022,”
the statement concluded.
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) new Chairman, Ramiz Raja found this decision of England ‘a disappointment’ and took it to Twitter to share his thoughts.
“Disappointed with England, pulling out of their commitment and failing a member of their fraternity when it needed it most. Survive we will Inshallah. A wake-up call for Pak team to become the best team in the world for teams to line up to play them without making excuses.”
Ramiz Raja tweeted.