KARACHI, Sept 22: Pakistan coach Javed Miandad and stand-in captain Inzamam-ul-Haq on Monday thanked Bangladesh for leading the return of foreign cricket to Pakistan, saying the tourists proved cricketers are safe here.

“We thank Bangladesh for playing in Pakistan and by playing a one-day in Karachi they proved to the world that cricket is safe here,” Miandad told reporters.

Despite whitewashing them 3-0 in Tests and 5-0 in the one-day series, Pakistan owes Bangladesh a debt of gratitude as their tour marked the return of international cricket to Pakistan after a 15-month drought due to security fears.

New Zealand had to cut short a tour of Pakistan when a suicide bomb blast outside their team hotel in May last year killed 14 people including 11 French naval staff.

Despite the untroubled tour by Bangladesh, a minor blast in Karachi on Friday prompted South Africa to cancel its tour to Pakistan.

Bangladesh manager M.A. Latif Khan said his team’s tour was trouble-free.

“We played a Test match in Karachi last month, a one-day match on Sunday and the security at present is excellent.

“None of our players had any security problem, whatsoever.”—Reuters