New Zealand rules out playing cricket in Pak to raise funds for flood victims
By ANIMonday, August 23, 2010
AUCKLAND - New Zealand Cricket (NZC) Chief Executive Justin Vaughan has said that it is not possible for the Black Caps to travel to Pakistan to help with fundraising matches for the flood ravaged country.
Vaughan said this while responding to reports from Pakistan that New Zealand had offered to play cricket matches in the country for charity.
He confirmed that NZC had sent an email to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) suggesting that cricket had a part to play in helping alleviate the people’s suffering, “but certainly it should not be construed that the Blacks Caps would be going to play there”.
“At no point did we offer that the Black Caps would be touring as they certainly won’t be playing there this year,” Stuff.co.nz quoted Vaughan, as saying.
He further felt that it would be up to the PCB to organise fund-raisers outside Pakistan.
Earlier, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) media manager Nadeem Sarwar had said that NZC had expressed its willingness to tour Pakistan to raise funds for the victims of the devastating deluge, which has affected nearly 20 million people.
“We have received an e-mail from New Zealand Cricket in which they have said they are even willing to play in Pakistan to raise funds,” Sarwar had said.
“It’s (the tour) in a very early stage, but we think it’s a very good gesture on the part of NZC,” he added.
Leading cricket teams have refused to visit Pakistan following the 2009 attack on the Sri Lanka national cricket team in Lahore, which killed eight people, as well as injuring seven Sri Lankan players and their assistant coach.
In the last two years, Pakistan ‘home’ games have also been staged in the United Arab Emirates and New Zealand.
Pakistan, which was due to co-host the 2011 World Cup, was also stripped of its matches following the attack on the Sri Lankan team.
Pakistan was supposed to hold 14 matches, including one semi-final. Eight of Pakistan’s matches have been awarded to India, four to Sri Lanka and two to Bangladesh. (ANI)
