England to play two additional T20Is in 2022 tour of Pakistan

England will play two additional T20 Internationals to the five originally planned when they tour Pakistan next year, its cricket board’s Chief Executive Tom Harrison announced here on Tuesday after meeting with PCB chairman Ramiz Raja.

England will play the T20I matches in September/October next year. They will then return to Pakistan in November/December at the back of the T20 World Cup in Australia to play three Tests, which will form part of the ICC World Test Championship.

“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,” Harrison said in a Pakistan Cricket Board release.

“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.”

Harrison had flown to Pakistan to meet Ramiz in a bid to mend relations which were damaged by the cancellation of last month’s tour.

The England men’s team was set to tour Pakistan in October for the first time since 2005, while their women have never played in that country.

However, ECB had cancelled both the series, citing “mental and physical well-being” of players and security concerns, a decision that was met with heavy criticism.

“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 cancelation of our tour in October,” Harrison said.

“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.”

Harrison said he had discussions with PCB officials around pathway engagement, how to support proposals around the women’s game and some interesting ideas around the domestic agenda in Pakistan.

“We’re going to build on these plans going forward together and we’re excited about that too.” Raja said PCB is excited that England have committed to playing two additional T20Is as part of their white-ball tour next year.

“The ECB have shown large heartedness to be here for which I am thankful to Tom and Martin. It means a lot to us. We put in lot of efforts to make sure that all visiting teams are comfortable in Pakistan.

“It’s a matter of pride for Pakistan fans, who look forward to welcoming Australia and England in 2022. England have got a great team and it’s mind-boggling how they’ve produced so many match-winners in a span of about five to seven years. They play very engaging and attractive cricket, which is fantastic for the fans and a big advertisement of the game.”

Harrison’s decision to come to Pakistan comes on the heels of the announcement by Cricket Australia that it will be touring Pakistan early next year.

Australia’s confirmation to send its team to Pakistan had come just days after the West Indies board also announced it would be touring Pakistan in December for a white-ball series.