Officials announced on Friday that Pakistan's T20 cricket league will be moved to the United Arab Emirates due to recent Indian attacks on the country, including a drone that reached the Rawalpindi stadium. Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar reported that Pakistan's army "neutralized" 28 Indian drones, one of which was intercepted near the stadium on Thursday morning. He described the incident as "a deliberate attempt to target both domestic and foreign cricket players."
The Pakistan Cricket Board has announced that the remaining matches of the Pakistan Super League will be relocated to the UAE. In a statement, the PCB indicated that the updated schedule would be provided in due course. This decision followed multiple discussions between the franchise and PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi, who also serves as the country's interior minister. Naqvi emphasized that the choice was made to ensure the safety of the players.
"The PCB has consistently maintained that politics and sports should remain separate. However, due to India's reckless and dangerous act of targeting the stadium, we have made this decision," Naqvi stated in the announcement. "We have relocated the remaining matches to the UAE to ensure the safety of both our domestic and international cricketers, who are valued guests, from any potential threats posed by India." The match between former champions Karachi Kings and Peshawar Zalmi, scheduled for Thursday at Rawalpindi Stadium, was postponed after a drone landed near the venue.
A total of thirty-seven foreign players from countries such as Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, the West Indies, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Afghanistan are participating in the PSL. According to sources, these players are reluctant to remain in Pakistan following violent clashes between the two nuclear-armed nations, which have prompted international appeals for peace. On Wednesday, India conducted airstrikes in Pakistan, two weeks after accusing Islamabad of supporting an attack on the Indian-administered region of disputed Kashmir, a claim that Pakistan has denied.
On Thursday, Pakistan retaliated with heavy artillery fire, while both sides accused one another of launching multiple drone attacks.
International cricket returned to Pakistan in 2020, following a suspension that lasted since the 2009 terrorist attacks on the Sri Lankan team bus in Lahore.
Several players from Australia and New Zealand participating in this season's Pakistan Super League (PSL), including Australia's David Warner, had previously traveled to Pakistan with their national teams.
