The England and Wales Cricket Board has officially withdrawn its upcoming tour of Pakistan. The board discussed the matter over the weekend and for the “well-being” of the players, the decision has been taken. The English players are now likely to be available for IPL playoffs as ECB calls off tour to Pakistan.
ECB calls off tour to Pakistan
The official statement read, “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 travelling 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.”
A few days ago, despite having reached the country, New Zealand called off its tour citing security reasons. This received wide backlash from the Pakistani cricketers and fans. Following this, the ECB has also taken a similar decision. The board also expressed its apology to PCB for having taken the decision. ECB had earlier planned a tour for both the men’s and the women’s teams to Pakistan in October this year.
"We can confirm that the Board has reluctantly decided to withdraw both teams from the October trip."
🇵🇰 #PAKvENG 🏴
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) September 20, 2021
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Line cleared for English players to be part of IPL Playoffs
Considering that England had planned a tour in October, it was deemed that the English cricketers would be unavailable for the IPL playoffs. The playoffs would start on October 10th in Dubai. However, the line is now cleared for them to be part of the event.
Teams like Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders will be happy with the news. Especially CSK, who is in line for a playoff spot after losing out on it in IPL 2020. Hence, the likes of Sam Curran and Moeen Ali can be part of the important encounters. A few days after the IPL finishes, the T20 World Cup will take place in UAE and Oman. The ICC event will start on October 17th.
