© CWI Media
The last non-Asian women’s team to tour Pakistan, West Indies are set to play in the country after nearly 15 years for a three-match T20I series from January 31 to February 3 in Karachi. West Indies had last toured Pakistan in Mach 2004 for an ODI series and were only the second team overall to play in Pakistan, after Netherlands. This will mark the resumption of women’s international cricket in Pakistan since they hosted Bangladesh for two T20Is and as many ODIs in September-October 2015.
The three T20Is will be played at the Southend Club in Karachi, before Pakistan and West Indies move to Dubai for three ODIs that will be part of the 2017-21 ICC Women’s Championship. The first ODI will be played at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, while the second and third matches will be played at the ICC Academy. The West Indies women will first arrive in Dubai on January 26 before travelling to Karachi on January 30.
“The visit of the West Indies women’s team to Karachi is great news not only for Pakistan cricket but for women’s cricket in general,” PCB chief operating officer Subhan Ahmad said. “We are thankful to Cricket West Indies and their players for trusting the PCB and agreeing to play three T20Is in Karachi.
“The decision of Cricket West Indies endorses our position that Pakistan is as safe and secure as any other country. On behalf of the PCB, I would like to say that we are confident that this tour will go a long way in the complete revival of international cricket in Pakistan.
“The PCB and the CWI have a very long history of collaboration and mutual respect, and this decision further illustrates strong relationship between the two boards. With the West Indies women’s cricket team’s agreement to partake in the three T20Is, the CWI has reiterated their support for a key member of the cricket fraternity in a time when we are working extremely hard to get international cricket back into our backyard.
“By playing in Karachi, they will also contribute to the growth and popularity of women’s cricket in this part of the world. I am sure this series will inspire a number of young women cricketers to take up this great sport.”
CWI chief executive officer Johnny Grave, said: ” “This tour is a further major step for our friends at the Pakistan Cricket Board to bring their cricket back home, and we are pleased that our players and support staff have recognized this and supported this venture.
“The security plan arranged by the PCB is of exactly the same level that the Windies men’s team had last year and independent security advisors, Eastern Star International (ESI), have confirmed to both the CWI and WIPA that they are satisfied that the risk is manageable and can be mitigated to an acceptable level.
“We have made it very clear to the players and support staff that should any of them have any personal reservations about this tour, than we fully understand and accept their position.”
Last year, the West Indies men’s team played three T20Is in Karachi, snapping a near-decade absence of top-flight, bilateral international cricket in Pakistan, enforced by the attack on the Sri Lankan team bus in Lahore, in 2009. Zimbabwe, too, toured in 2015, for five limited-overs games, while World XI exhibition T20s, a T20I against Sri Lanka and a few Pakistan Super League matches have been played in the past two years.
More to follow…
© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
Source: ESPN Crickinfo