England manager Brendon McCullum has called for clarification on the venues for England’s upcoming tour of Pakistan, where the two teams will play three Test matches against each other. It is noteworthy that all Test matches are part of the World Test Championship (WTC) and are of utmost importance.
The first Test match of the series is scheduled to begin in Multan from October 7. The next two matches will be played in Karachi and Rawalpindi respectively. However, there is uncertainty over the venues for the Test match series due to the ongoing construction work at stadiums in Pakistan for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.
The Champions Trophy will be held at Pakistan’s three stadiums in Lahore, Rawalpindi and Karachi. As a result, all these stadiums are undergoing major changes. The renovation inside the stadiums has forced the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to consider moving the Tests outside the country.
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Brendon McCullum seeks clarification on England’s venues for Pakistan Tests
The uncertainty has forced England coach Brendon McCullum to speak out on the issue. In an interview with reporters ahead of England’s third Test match against Sri Lanka at The Oval, London, McCullum called for the issue to be addressed quickly as knowing the venues will be important for team selection for the tour.
“We don’t really know (what’s going on in Pakistan), but we can’t pick a team until we know where we’re going to play,” McCullum said.
“It would be good if we knew in the next few days. Then we’ll sit down and make sure we have the right team for the right conditions and the right opponent,” he added.
In recent times, Pakistan’s pitches have been favourable to batsmen. However, during the recent series between the Shan Masood-led team and Bangladesh, which was played in the country, the pitches also helped the batsmen. The highly unpredictable nature of Pakistani pitches makes knowledge of the venues an important part of planning.
Alternative venues for the test series
If Pakistan is unable to host the matches against England, the series could be shifted to the UAE or Sri Lanka. Abu Dhabi seems the most likely venue to host the matches as Dubai and Sharjah are scheduled to host the 2024 Women’s T20 World Cup matches.
Brendon McCullum was recently appointed as England’s head coach in the white-ball formats after former white-ball coach Matthew Mott was removed from the role following the team’s semi-final exit at the 2024 T20 World Cup.
England’s previous performance in Pakistan
England had tremendous success the last time they played a Test series in Pakistan. The Three Lions defeated the Men in Green 3-0 in 2022, and Bazball’s approach played a key role in the victory.
England are currently playing Sri Lanka in a three-match Test series. They already have a 2-0 lead in the series and have just one match left to play. Ollie Pope is leading the team in the absence of Ben Stokes, who was ruled out due to a hamstring injury.