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West Indies offers to host England Test series against Pakistan in Caribbean

The series is under a cloud due to the coronavirus pandemic

West Indies offers to host England Test series against Pakistan in Caribbean PHOTO: AFP

Cricket West Indies (CWI) have offered to host England’s three-match home Test series against Pakistan, scheduled to begin this year on July 30 at the Lord’s Cricket Ground.

England is also scheduled to host West Indies for three Tests in June before the Pakistan series. However, both the aforementioned series are now under a cloud due to the coronavirus pandemic.

According to a report by The Daily Mail, with the coronavirus cases expected to surge around June in the United Kingdom (UK), CWI and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) are now looking at various options with regards to rescheduling the series.

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The report further added that there is a possibility of shifting the Windies series against England to the Caribbean, which has prompted CWI to also explore the possibility of hosting the Test series between England and Pakistan.

Pakistan is also scheduled to play three One-day internationals (ODIs) against Netherlands and two Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is) against Ireland in July on their Euro tour before squaring off against England. It remains to be seen whether these matches will also be affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

However, according to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) spokesperson, any decision regarding the aforementioned series will be taken by the home boards.

“There is a lot of time in the series. The Netherlands and Ireland boards have made no contact just yet. The two countries will be hosting the Pakistan cricket team. Therefore, any decisions are also to be made by them. Right now, it will probably be premature to say that the staging of the series is uncertain,” PCB spokesperson said.