PCB could consider moving one Test against England offshore

Ongoing work at stadiums in Pakistan has forced the PCB to consider the possibility of moving one Test of the series against England offshore. Abu Dhabi, for so long one of Pakistan’s “home” venues during their decade-long exile, has been discussed as a potential alternative if required.

Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium and the National Stadium in Karachi are undergoing major overhauls. Rawalpindi Stadium, which hosted the two Bangladesh Tests, is also having renovation work done, all in an attempt to be ready in time to host the Champions Trophy in February next year, the first ICC event Pakistan is scheduled to host since 1996.

Lahore is not hosting a game until the Champions Trophy and Karachi, which was supposed to host one Test in each of the Bangladesh and England series, is not expected to see action until the first Test against the West Indies in January next year.

That has left Pakistan with Multan and Rawalpindi as the only two venues which can stage Tests. It is still likely that these two grounds host all three Tests but there could be concern that hosting two Tests in Rawalpindi could slow down work underway there, potentially impacting on the Champions Trophy.

Faisalabad’s Iqbal cricket Stadium will host the Champions Cup from September 12 to 29, and has seen its prominence as a viable international venue rise of late, but has not hosted a Test since 2006 and is not currently a likely venue for a Test in that series.

Another complicating factor concerns a Shanghai Corporation Organisation (SCO) meeting Pakistan is scheduled to host from October 15-16. The heads of several participating nations are slated to arrive in Islamabad for the event, and the security and accommodation demands that entails rules out Rawalpindi as an option for the second Test, which will be played from October 15 to 19.

If the series is to be played in Pakistan in its entirety, that realistically means Pindi can, at most, play host to the first and third Tests, with the second taking place in Multan. Multan hosting two Tests has not been ruled out as an option, and because it is the only realistic venue in Pakistan for the second Test, that would necessitate consecutive games in the city: either the first two or the last two.

That has left the PCB considering their options, one of which is Abu Dhabi. Dubai and Sharjah will be hosting the T20 Women’s World Cup during that period, itself moved from Bangladesh. Abu Dhabi is hosting an Ireland white-ball series against South Africa that ends on October 7 – the date the first Test is slated to begin. Barring a change of date for the start of the series, that effectively rules out the first Test in the UAE.

Whatever option the PCB finally settles upon, the pressure to do so urgently is considerable. Substantial numbers of England fans will arrive for the series, but any logistical arrangements cannot be made until venues are finalised. England head coach Brendon McCullum also pointed out his side needed to know the venues in advance to be able to pick a squad.

“We don’t really know [what the final venues],” McCullum said at the press conference on the eve of the third Test against Sri Lanka at the Oval. “But we can’t pick a team until we know where we’re going to play. It would be nice if over the next couple of days, we found out. And then we’ll sit down and make sure we’ve got the right team for the right conditions and the right opposition.”

The stadium upgrades coincide with Pakistan’s busiest season at home in decades, with seven Tests, four white-ball internationals, the Champions Trophy and an expanded domestic calendar all vying for space between now and deep into next year. The upgrades, long overdue at several venues, became impossible to put off any more as Pakistan prepare to host next year’s Champions Trophy.