Pakistan to host ODI tri-series after 20 years

Pakistan’s Cricket Board said on Friday it will host South Africa and New Zealand in a one-day international tri-series, the country’s first tournament involving three nations after a gap of 20 years.

The series was greenlit on the sidelines of an International Cricket Council (ICC) meeting in Dubai, according to Pakistan’s board.

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International cricket only fully returned to Pakistan in 2020, following attacks on the Sri Lankan team bus in Lahore in 2009.

Pakistan was stripped of its right to co-host the World Cup two years later, with security concerns lingering in the aftermath of those attacks.

The country last hosted a tri-series in 2004, which involved Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe.

Newly elected PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi said the tri-series will serve as a build-up to the eight-nation Champions Trophy, the first ICC event in the country since the 1996 World Cup.

“The tri-series between Pakistan, South Africa and New Zealand will be an exciting event and it is after a long time that Pakistan will host such a tournament,” Naqvi said in the PCB release.

“The PCB is also looking forward to hosting the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 which will be a great pleasure for Pakistan to host the top eight ODI teams on its soil.”