Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Shahryar Khan on Thursday said the national team had delayed its departure to India for the ICC World Twenty20, pending a written security guarantee from the Government of India.
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The PCB, however, deferred departure and called for further guarantees of security from the hosts of the global tournament following “specific threats to the team from various political parties and groups during the tour ” .
The breakthrough comes as Mamata Banerjee, chief minister of the Indian state of West Bengal, assured in writing “foolproof security” to the Pakistan team for its match against India. “Our hope is that our cricketing relations (between India and Pakistan) remain intact”, Khan said. India’s Ministry of External Affairs also issued a statement after the meeting, reiterating that security will be fool-proof for all participating teams. “So, security and safety will be taken care of”, Shukla told the media in New Delhi.
The team official said there is dire need on part of every team member to demonstrate positive cricket and to play his due role in reviving the performance of the team.
“But the safety and security of the event is of paramount importance to the ICC and we have taken into consideration the concerns shared with us by our security advisors as well as Pakistan Cricket Board”, the ICC CEO said.
“I want to say this very clearly to Pakistan that teams from all across the world are coming to India and we have also shifted the match to Kolkata”, Thakur told ANI.
“We are confident that the ICC World T20 will also be a resounding success in all aspects”.
Their first match of the tournament will be held at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on March 16 against a qualifier team, followed by a clash against India at the same venue three days later.
The Pakistan team was originally scheduled to depart for India on Tuesday evening. “For global events, it is our sovereign duty to provide security to any country, including Pakistan”, he had said.
Earlier today, PCB Chairman Shaharyar Khan said that a detailed report has been sent to the Interior Ministry on the security assurances received from the ICC and the BCCI. “There will be about 100,000 people at Eden Gardens and even a bottle thrown at our players can disturb them”, he added.
ICC chief executive David Richardson earlier said the decision to shift the venue was taken following consultation with the BCCI, the relevant state associations, the ICC and BCCI security consultant and other relevant authorities.
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PCB chief Najam Sethi has said that the Pakistan government has given the clearance for the Pakistani team to travel to India, after assurances of full security were provided by the Indian government.
