West Indies women to play three T20Is in Karachi

Another ray of hope in fully restoring international cricket in the country as the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) confirmed today (Thursday) that the West Indies women’s cricket team will play three T20Is in Karachi.

The three T20sI will be played on January 31, February 1 and 3 at the Southend Club.  Following 20 overs series, both teams will play three One-Day Internationals (ODI) in Dubai on 7, 9 and 11 of the month.

The first ODI will be played at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, while the second and third ODIs will be played at the ICC Academy.

As part of their series preparation, former ICC Women’s World T20 champions will arrive in Dubai on 26 January, before traveling to Karachi on 30 January.

This will be the West Indies women’s first tour to Karachi in 15 years. In March/April 2004, the West Indies played a drawn Test in Pakistan and won a seven-ODI series 5-2.

Commenting on the tour, Cricket West Indies Chief Executive Officer, Johnny Grave, said: “Following the successful hosting of the West Indies men’s team in Pakistan in April 2018, we have confirmed to the PCB that our women’s squad will now also play a three-match T20I series in Karachi.”

He added: “This tour is a further major step for our friends at the PCB to bring their cricket back home, and we are pleased that our players and support staff have recognized this and supported this venture.”

Commenting on security arrangements he said, “The security plan arranged by the PCB is of exactly the same level that our men’s team had last year and independent security advisors, Eastern Star International (ESI), have confirmed to both the CWI and WIPA that they are satisfied that the risk is manageable and can be mitigated to an acceptable level.”

Ayesha Ashhar, PCB General Manager - Women’s Wing, said.  “We are really excited and pleased that the West Indies team is coming to Pakistan it is a great move for the revival of international cricket in the country.”