The three-match ODI series between Afghanistan and Pakistan, which was earlier scheduled to be played in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), will now be held in Sri Lanka, the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) confirmed. 

Earlier the UAE had confirmed the venue for the matches. However, the postponement of the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), and its subsequent rescheduling in the UAE, made venues unavailable for the Pakistan-Afghanistan series.

Cricbuzz reported that the ACB had also approached UAE and Oman for hosting the series against Pakistan but both countries failed to accommodate them due to the upcoming IPL that is seen as a big money-spinner.

The remainder of IPL 2021 is now scheduled in UAE in September and the country will also host the World T20 championship alongside Oman after the completion of India’s premier T20 competition. 

Now the series will be played in Sri Lanka’s Mahinda Rajapaksa Stadium in Hambantota. 

The series was scheduled after Afghanistan’s star all-rounder Mohammad Nabi early this year met Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan and requested him to arrange a bilateral series. Khan then told the Pakistan Cricket Board to organize a bilateral series involving the two neighboring nations.

The two cricket-mad South Asian nations will be facing off bilaterally at a time when diplomatic ties between the two are at an all-time low. 

(SAM)