KARACHI, Dec 14: Security held precedence over everything else since the arrival of Pakistan and England squads in the city ahead of Thursday’s One-day International at National Stadium. Security personnel of different law enforcement agencies were present everywhere in the vicinity of the team’s hotel and on the adjacent roads, by-lanes and rooftops of nearby buildings.

Escorted by gun-totting uniformed men in armoured vehicles the cricketers came to the stadium for nets on Wednesday morning, with the entire area being cordoned off with nobody allowed to get close to them.

Throughout the practice session, which took place inside the main ground instead of the nets area adjacent to the main building, security people, chiefly anti-terrorist forces had taken positions at the edge of the boundary in a large circle.

Given the state of security arrangements, which are as same as those normally reserved for VVIPs, it was hardly a surprise to learn that the England squad was held up for almost an hour in the traffic on its way to the ground for nets late in the afternoon.

One of the main reasons for England’s poor showing in the Test series has been publicly attributed to the stringent security measures, as a result of which the tourists have hardly been able to relax at all.

The players have generally confined themselves to their hotel rooms most of their free time when away from the cricket fields. With social activities virtually non-existent, this ‘excuse’ is no surprise.

After all, it was at the insistence of England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), the Pakistani authorities decided to implement strict security measures.

From day one, the ECB had rejected Karachi as one of the Test venues and only agreed to come to this vibrant city after being assured of foolproof security from the Pakistan government.