Afghanistan-Pakistan ODI Series Shifted From Sri Lanka to Pakistan

Afghanistan's 3-match ODI series against Pakistan has been moved from SL's Hambantota to Pakistan because of logistical challenges in the team's travel.

Logistical issues related to air travel and the 10-day lockdown imposed in Sri Lanka has forced the Afghanistan-Pakistan ODI series to be moved from Sri Lanka to Pakistan.

The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) CEO Hamid Shinwari confirmed the shift of the ODI series to ESPNcricinfo. No commercial flights are taking off from Kabul following the Taliban takeover of the country and Sri Lanka announced a 10-day lockdown on Friday, two days after the country reported 3,793 new cases and a highest-ever single-day death toll of 187.

All three matches in the series between Afghanistan and Pakistan were to be played in Hambantota and involved a three-day quarantine period on arrival for both sides. Afghanistan team will now travel to Pakistan later this week and the ACB is yet to announce the venue(s) for the ODIs starting September 3.

The Afghanistan team that has assembled in Kabul was to travel by road to Pakistan and fly to Dubai from where it was to take another flight to Colombo. The team will now travel to Pakistan by road later this week.

Former ACB Chairman @AzizullahFazli has been re-appointed as ACB’s acting Chairman. He will oversee ACB’s leadership and course of action for the upcoming competitions. pic.twitter.com/IRqekHq7Jt

— Afghanistan Cricket Board (@ACBofficials) August 22, 2021

On Sunday, Azizullah Fazli was reappointed as the new chairman of the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB). Fazli has already served one term as ACB chairman, from his appointment in September 2018 – following the resignation of Atif Mashal – until July 2019, when he was replaced by Farhan Yusufzai following Afghanistan’s bottom-placed finish at the 2019 World Cup in England.

His appointment came a week after the Taliban seized control over Kabul and the collapse of the government with President Ashraf Ghani fleeing the country.