ISLAMABAD: Briefing a committee of the Upper House of Parliament, Pakistan Cricket Board Chairman Ramiz Raja said New Zealand Cricket was in the process of rescheduling their tour of the South Asian nation after being “pressured” by Pakistan, local media reported on Thursday.

Last month New Zealand abruptly abandoned their tour of Pakistan citing a security alert in a massive blow to the South Asian country’s hopes of staging regular international cricket. England also pulled its men’s and women’s teams out of scheduled tournaments just days after.

“Briefing the Senate Standing Committee on Inter-Provincial Coordination on Thursday, Raja said the New Zealand cricket board was now rescheduling the tour after being pressured by Pakistan,” Pakistan’s Dawn newspaper said, quoting the PCB chairman.

Dawn said committee chairman Raza Rabbani suggested that the PCB chief turn down New Zealand’s tour as a sign of protest over the abrupt cancelation.

But Raja replied: “We have to live with them. But we can tell them that Pakistan can find a time window for the tour at some point in 2022.”

He also added that if the New Zealand team was ready to play on Pakistan’s terms “then we should have no problem.”

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern had told her Pakistan counterpart Imran Khan at the time of the tour’s cancelation that the cricket team could have been attacked. The Pakistani interior minister has insisted the country’s security agencies did not have any such information.

New Zealand, minus several frontline players, were visiting Pakistan for the first time in 18 years and were also due to play five Twenty20 matches in Lahore.

Top teams have largely shunned Pakistan following an attack on the Sri Lanka team bus in 2009 that killed six policemen and two civilians.