England cricket chief Tom Harrison flies to Pakistan for meetings with PCB chairman

Published
This photo shows England and Wales Cricket Board chief executive Tom Harrison. — Photo courtesy: ECB website
This photo shows England and Wales Cricket Board chief executive Tom Harrison. — Photo courtesy: ECB website

English cricket's top administrator has flown to Pakistan in a bid to repair relations damaged by the cancellation of October's Twenty20 tour.

A spokesperson for the England and Wales Cricket Board told AFP in London on Monday that Chief Executive Tom Harrison had travelled for meetings with Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Ramiz Raja.

Former Test batsman Raja said he felt “humiliated” when the ECB announced in September it was calling off the tour.

Read: Pakistan feels 'used and binned', says Ramiz after England cancels tour

England, who last played in Pakistan 16 years ago, are due to play a Test series there in 2022.

The ECB cited “increasing concerns about travelling to the region” in cancelling October's tour, just days after New Zealand also pulled out of a tour to Pakistan over security concerns.

However, British High Commissioner to Pakistan Christian Turner had said that the commission had supported the tour, adding that the decision was taken by the ECB over "concerns of player welfare".

The first trip by the England men's side to Pakistan since 2005 was only meant to last four days, with two Twenty20 matches in Rawalpindi on October 13 and 14.

Two women's T20 matches were scheduled on the same days as double-headers, with three women's One-Day Internationals to follow in the same city.

Pakistan travelled to England last year at a time when Covid-19 infection rates in Britain were among the highest in the world for a three-match Test series and T20 series that saved the ECB millions in television rights deals.

Consequently, there was a bitter reaction in Pakistan when England called off the October fixtures.

Read: 'No more a gentleman's game': Pakistanis heartbroken, angry as England cancel tour after NZ

“It's the feeling of being used and then binned,” Raja told reporters in September. “One feels slighted, one feels humiliated because withdrawal doesn't have an answer,” he added.

Harrison's visit to Pakistan is expected to be brief as he is due in the United Arab Emirates later this week for an International Cricket Council chief executives' meeting.

The confirmation of his trip came on the day that Cricket Australia announced plans for a tour of Pakistan starting in March 2022 that would be their first visit to the country in 24 years.

Opinion

Editorial

A new chokepoint
Updated 24 Jul, 2026

A new chokepoint

WITH free transit of vessels through the Strait of Hormuz blocked due to the US-Iran conflict, a new chokepoint has...
Improved rating
24 Jul, 2026

Improved rating

S&P GLOBAL’S decision to upgrade Pakistan’s long-term sovereign credit rating to ‘B’ with a stable...
More firetraps
24 Jul, 2026

More firetraps

WHILE it was already apparent that death traps dot Karachi, a safety audit by the Sindh government has thrown up...
De-escalation efforts
23 Jul, 2026

De-escalation efforts

WHILE the exchange of fire across the Gulf — and the wider Middle East — continues between the US and Iran,...
Time to integrate
23 Jul, 2026

Time to integrate

PAKISTAN remains one of the least regionally integrated economies in Asia. The trade figures for the last fiscal ...
Modi unnerved
23 Jul, 2026

Modi unnerved

DISCONTENT is visible in India. Delhi has been on the boil since last month. As thousands took to the streets ...