KARACHI: Pakistan’s cricket chiefs hope the country can host a full series by 2020, after a successful tour by the West Indies sparked hopes of an international revival.
The three-match series against the World Twenty20 champions, staged in the once militancy-wracked port city of Karachi, was accompanied by a wave of optimism, with enthusiastic fans braving heavy security checks to express their gratitude to the West Indies for the visit which ended Tuesday.
Last month Karachi also hosted the final of the popular Pakistan Super League, the biggest cricket event in the city since a 2009 attack on the visiting Sri Lankan team in Lahore drove international cricket from the country.
Pakistan was forced to host its international fixtures in the United Arab Emirates. But with security dramatically improving in the last three years, the Pakistan Cricket Board has been taking “gradual steps” to bring them back, PCB chairman Najam Sethi said.
“They are bearing positive results,” he told AFP.
“We will host more PSL matches next year and by that time almost all the top international players from top cricketing nations will have played in Pakistan,” he predicted.
“Then we can convince their boards to send national teams for a full series to Pakistan in 2020.”
His confidence is striking, coming after so many false starts.
Sri Lanka had agreed to return in 2011, but an attack on a Karachi naval base derailed that hope. The PCB then convinced Ireland to tour in 2014, only to have the trip canceled after militants attacked the Karachi airport.
Bangladesh also declined tours not once but twice out of unspecified security concerns, after initially agreeing in 2012.
But in 2015 the sound of the Pakistani national anthem rang out at Lahore’s Qaddafi Stadium once more as minnows Zimbabwe became the first international team to return.
Unprecedented security was put in place with some 30,000 policemen and military personnel on guard as spectators braved heat and security checkpoints to attend the first international match in the country in six years.
Not everyone touted it as a success. “What kind of message of peace will we send abroad by arranging the match after closing down shops and roads?” grumbled former Pakistan captain-turned-politician Imran Khan at the time.
But security has continued to improve under a military crackdown, and confidence has been steadily growing, despite continued sporadic attacks and strong warnings from critics that Pakistan has not done enough to get to the root causes of extremism.
In 2017 Pakistan hosted the PSL final in Lahore. Some top foreign players — like Kevin Pietersen of England, Shane Watson of Australia and Rilee Rossouw of South Africa — stayed away.
But those who came, like double World Twenty20 winning West Indian captain Darren Sammy, were won over.
That led to a visit by a World XI side, then the emotional return by the Sri Lankan team in October last year, a hugely symbolic event that also saw Pakistanis turn out in their thousands to welcome the visitors with open arms.
Sammy — a Pakistani crowd favorite — returned for two PSL play-offs in Lahore and the final in Karachi this year, and his presence influenced former teammates Andre Fletcher, Samuel Badree and Chadwick Walton to be part of the West Indies team.
Security remained an enormous issue, however, with massive, head-of-state level arrangements made for each visit. A security company appointed by the International Cricket Council (ICC) under its Pakistan Task Team had greenlit the matches.
“We realized that matches caused inconvenience for Lahorites and Karachiites, but they were a big gain for Pakistan,” Sethi said.
Now the PCB is setting its sights on bigger teams, with hopes that sides such as South Africa could tour by next year. Pakistan’s Interior Minister has also invited the England team to come.
Former Pakistan captain-turned-commentator Ramiz Raja praised the efforts in a newspaper column recently.
Pakistan, he wrote, “will fight tooth and nail to bring international cricket back home.”
Pakistan firmly on road to cricket revival, says PCB
Pakistan firmly on road to cricket revival, says PCB
- Karachi hosted the final of popular Pakistan Super League (PSL) last month
- In Pakistan, security has continued to improve under a military crackdown, and confidence has been steadily growing
Canada’s Lee sets pace, Kim in the hunt for LIV Golf wild card spots
- LIV Golf Promotions in Florida offers top 3 finishers a chance to play in 2026 regular season
LECANTO: Canada’s Richard T. Lee has proved the player to watch during the first three days at LIV Golf Promotions and is now well-placed for a wild-card spot in the 2026 LIV Golf season.
Anthony Kim, meanwhile, found another gear on the back nine on Saturday, putting him in a better position to return to full-time status in the league.
The final 18 holes of the 36-hole shootout at Black Diamond Ranch take place on Sunday with a potentially career-changing reward for the top three finishers — guaranteed LIV Golf wild-card status for 2026. In addition, the top 10 and ties earn exemptions into the Asian Tour’s International Series.
For the second time this week, Lee led the field with a bogey-free 6-under 64. The 35-year-old will take a two-shot lead over his closest pursuers going into Sunday, giving him a significant advantage. However, he does not plan to take his foot off the gas.
“Honestly, I don’t think it would be comfortable for any player to have a two-shot lead on the last day,” said Lee, who has two eagles, 13 birdies and just one bogey in his 54 competitive holes this week. “I’ll just put my hat on and just play my golf.”
Kim is among three players who are tied for second after shooting a bogey-free 4-under 66, along with South Africa’s Oliver Bekker and Thailand’s Jazz Janewattananond. Denmark’s Lucas Bjerregaard is solo fifth after his 3-under 67, with five other players lurking at 1 under.
Kim, who played as a wild card in the past two seasons following his return to competitive golf after a 12-year retirement, was just 1 under through 12 holes on Saturday. But he made consecutive lengthy birdie putts at the 13th and 14th holes, birdied the par-5 16th, then saved par with a 15-footer at the par-4 18th that circled the cup before dropping.
“I have an opportunity to get one of those spots,” said the 40-year-old, the only American to advance to the weekend. “That’s what I asked for coming into this week and put myself in a good position. Now I’ve just got to go finish.”
Kim would not be in this position had he not made an 8-foot birdie putt on the 18th on Friday to make the cut on the number.
“I knew that if I didn’t make birdie on 18 [Friday] that my chances of playing on LIV next year were gone, and to me that’s a big deal,” Kim said. “I’d like to play at the highest level against the best players. It meant a lot to me.”
Bekker was part of LIV Golf’s inaugural field at the 2022 London tournament. Four seasons later, he’s excited about the opportunity to return to the league as a full-time member.
“Thinking back on it now, I had the opportunity to play a few more events, and now I’m like, well, maybe I should have played them,” he said. “The water was a bit rough at that stage and didn’t know what was going to happen, so I played it a bit safe. Luckily, I’ve been given another opportunity this week, and hopefully I can take it.”
Janewattananond won four tournaments in 2019 when he became a top 50 world player and, aged 30, still has years left in his competitive career. After shooting a second-round 67 to advance to the weekend, he shot a 66 on Saturday that included four birdies in a six-hole stretch to end his front nine.
“It’s a very big prize at the end of the day,” he said. “Those three spots up for grabs, it would give me freedom to play wherever I want and security for my family.”
The 34-year-old Bjerregaard, a two-time winner on the DP World Tour, said earning full-time LIV Golf status would be career-changing.
“Where I am in my career right now, it’s probably that or retirement,” he said. “Yeah, that would mean a lot for sure.”
Although nothing is guaranteed, Lee has played so well this week that there may be just two spots available for the remainder of the field.
“We’re not playing for one spot,” said Janewattananond. “I don’t have to worry about him. I just have to worry about myself.”
“He played great today,” added Bjerregaard, playing in the same group as Lee on Saturday. “But I would be happy with any of the other two spots, so that’s fine. I can finish third. I wouldn’t mind.”
