World XI visit to Lahore a success but still a long way to go for Pakistan

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  • What now for Pakistan cricket after a successful World XI visit?

    After the successful completion of the Independence Cup which saw the return of international cricket to Pakistan after a long hiatus, the dust starts to settle on the euphoria generated by the visit of the ICC World XI.

    The three-match T20I series came to a conclusion on Friday with Pakistan edging the collection of international stars 2-1, to lift the Independence Cup at the Gaddafi stadium in Lahore.

    That the series went down smoothly without any incident is a testament to the efforts put in by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and the ICC.

    The ICC has made a concrete undertaking to facilitate the return of international cricket to the country and for the first time since the attacks on the Sri Lankan team bus in 2009, an ICC appointed official oversaw a match in Pakistan.

    Former West Indies skipper Sir Richie Richardson was the designated ICC match-referee for all the three games at Lahore.

    Presidential-level security was laid out for the historic series and close to 20,000 security-personnel were deployed on each of the three matchdays.

    The ICC had earlier contracted an international security firm to review the security structure in the country on an annual basis for a period of three years. The same firm had conducted a security review prior to the visit of the World XI.

    A successful conclusion of the Independence Cup had a lot riding on it with the series set to be a precursor for other international sides to resume their visits to the terrorism-affected country.

    The efforts of the ICC and the PCB had already started bearing fruit before the series had even begun when Sri Lanka and the West Indies agreed to visit the country later this year.

    Cricket West Indies (CWI) have announced a three-match T20I tour of Pakistan to take place in November while Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) have agreed to play one of the three T20Is scheduled between the two countries later this November at Lahore instead of the UAE.

    The presence of CWI chief Dave Cameron at the Gaddafi stadium on Friday in company of PCB chief Najam Sethi all but confirms that the Caribbean side will undertake the visit in November.

    While the visits of two international sides in the latter half of the current year bode well for Pakistan cricket, there is still a long way to go for the country to draw back major sides for a bilateral tour.

    ICC chief executive Dave Richardson said on Wednesday that there will be much more needed from Pakistan to normalize international cricket in its own backyard.

    When asked about the possibility of teams touring the country anytime soon owing to the successful visit of the World XI, Cricket Australia chief James Sutherland said: “I don’t see in the short term that there are any plans for us to play in Pakistan.”

    A complete return of international cricket to Pakistan in the near future seems unlikely at the moment. The PCB has had to rely on heavy financial incentives for the visiting players to draw them to the country so far.

    Earlier this March, to hold the final of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) in Lahore, the PCB paid the participating international players up to US$50,000 while the stars of the World XI were given up to $100,000 for their participation in the Independence Cup.

    The likes of Darren Sammy were paid up to $50,000 for the PSL final.

    The likes of Darren Sammy were paid up to $50,000 for the PSL final.

    Such expenditures in the long-run will not be sustainable for the PCB but that is the price it pays currently to assure the cricketers of their safety.

    While the Independence Cup is a good beginning to the ultimate goal of the PCB, it will take baby-steps for international cricket to return in a big way to the country.

    While for now the West Indies and Sri Lanka might not be the crème-de-crème of international cricket, a successful conclusion of their visit could open up more doors.

    The complete process will take some time but the road-map has now been laid out by the PCB and the ICC. It might still take a few more years to see the best of world cricket to resume their sojourns to the country but for now, short series against the likes of Sri Lanka and West Indies could form a solid foundation for the future.

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