England Agree to Play Additional T20Is on Pakistan Tour in 2022
ECB's Tom Harrison flew to Pakistan for a meeting where this was decided.
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England will now play seven T20 Internationals on their tour of Pakistan next year, with chief executive Tom Harrison agreeing to the extension after his recent bridge building trip to Lahore.
Earlier, England and Wales Cricket Board had decided to cancel their men’s and women’s trip to Pakistan which had been scheduled for October, leaving Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Ramiz Raja raging.
Following which Harrison flew down to Pakistan to meet with Raja to mend relations that had hit a tough spot.
Announcing the decision in an official release, Harrison said, "Myself and ECB's senior director Martin Darlow visited Lahore to talk face to face with the PCB around some of the things that have happened over the past few weeks, leading to the cancellation of our tour in October.
"We also wanted to discuss the future as the two boards have a historic relationship and want to move the agenda towards a forward-looking one as opposed to one looking back.
"This is just to reaffirm our commitment to Pakistan cricket to getting England teams, men's and women's teams, eventually playing in Pakistan at home. I don't think there's a cricketer in England who doesn't want to test their abilities against the huge talent this country has and in the conditions they know best."
The ECB took to twitter and confirmed it's decision to play two additional T20Is as well.
"The ECB have shown their large heartedness to be here for which I am thankful to Tom and Martin. It means a lot to us. We are excited that England have committed to playing two additional T20Is as part of their white-ball tour in September/October in 2022.
"We put in lots of efforts to make sure that all visiting teams are comfortable in Pakistan. As such, it is a matter of pride for the Pakistan fans, who look forward to welcoming Australia and England in 2022," said PCB Chairman Raja.
The confirmation of both tours by West Indies and Australian cricket board has also come as welcome news for the PCB, who were dealt a heavy blow by New Zealand’s decision to pull out from their tour in September because of security threats.
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