Australian Cricketers’ Association (ACA) chief Todd Greenberg has said there will be some players in the squad who will not be “comfortable” with playing in Pakistan during the Test and limited-overs series in March-April. He will “respect” their decision.
Australia are scheduled to play three Tests, three One Day Internationals and one T20I against Pakistan starting from March 3 at the National Stadium in Karachi.
“There may be one or two players who will not be comfortable despite our (Cricket Australia and ACA) best advice, and that’s okay, we need to respect that,” Greenberg told the Sydney Morning Herald.
This will be Australia’s first tour of Pakistan since 1998, when the Mark Taylor-led side won the three-Test series 1–0.
Greenberg, the former chief executive of the ACA, also said he would like to join the team if the security team allows the series to go ahead.
“I have assured the players that they will not go alone. If they are going to Pakistan, I will go with them and I think that is important. This is an opportunity to show the players that we are in this together. The ACA was with Cricket Australia on the former tour of Pakistan late last year, and all the reports were very positive. But we will continue to take the advice of the DFAT (Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade) and other government organizations, because we need to be able to satisfy not only the players, but their families, that it is safe to tour,” Greenberg said.
New Zealand had abandoned their limited-overs tour of Pakistan in September last year due to perceptions of a security threat and were ruled out hours before the start of the opening ODI. Later, England’s men’s and women’s teams also called for their brief visits to Pakistan ahead of the ICC T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates.
Cricket Australia (CA) chief executive Nick Hockley is also planning to travel to Pakistan for some period of the tour, while interim chairman Richard Freudenstein will also meet Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief Ramiz Raja during the series. can visit the country.
On a potential player being ruled out before the squad was announced, Greenberg told SYN radio, “We have to be kind and patient with each other, and there will be one or two players who say, ‘You know what, this It’s not for me at this particular point in my life and career, I’m not comfortable letting go’. If that’s the case then we need to have a lot of respect for that.”
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