Daily Times

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has finalised a tentative schedule for the two-match Test series against Sri Lanka to be played later this year. According to details, Pakistan will take on Sri Lanka in the longest format of the game as part of the ongoing International Cricket Council (ICC) Test Championship. The PCB is keen on hosting this series on home soil and has sent over a proposed schedule to Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) officials, which includes the first Test in Rawalpindi followed by the second one at the National Stadium Karachi. The Rawalpindi Test is likely to begin on December 11 while the Karachi Test on December 19, according to a top PCB official, but the final decision will be taken after further discussions.

The PCB has also briefed SLC about the security arrangements for the series and is hopeful that it will be able to convince the Islanders for the tour — especially bearing in mind their successful visit during the recently concluded limited-overs series in Karachi and Lahore, respectively. Earlier, SLC President Shammi Silva had said: “The safety and security of its players is the responsibility of the SLC, which it takes very seriously. If there had been any doubts, the SLC would not have gone ahead with this arrangement limited-overs series that we envisage will improve the players’ confidence and trust level and will also be critical when we start discussions on the schedule of the Test matches.”