ISLAMABAD: The government beefed up security and placed hospitals on “high alert” after the New Zealand cricket team arrived in the federal capital, Islamabad, on Tuesday, according to a notification issued by the administration of the city.
The tour comes as compensation by New Zealand who pulled out of their visit to Pakistan on the day of their first match in September 2021 while citing security concerns.
The Black Caps played two Tests and three One-Day Internationals (ODIs) in Pakistan just three months ago.
“In order to meet any emergency situation during the visit of the New Zealand Cricket Team from 18th to 27th April 2023, in the federal capital, it is requested that all hospitals in Islamabad may be kept at high alert and availability of ambulances along with paramedical staff may please be ensured,” the city’s administration said in the notification.
The New Zealand squad arrived in Pakistan’s eastern city of Lahore on April 11 and played three Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is) against the home team on April 14, 15, and 17. The team will now play the remaining matches in Rawalpindi on April 20 and April 24.
At the conclusion of the five-match T20 series, the two teams will face each other in a five-match ODI series. The first two ODI matches will be played in Rawalpindi, while the teams will travel to Karachi for the remaining three matches in May.
New Zealand squads
T20I: Tom Latham (c), Mark Chapman, Matt Henry, Cole McConchie, Daryl Mitchell, Rachin Ravindra, Ish Sodhi, Will Young, Chad Bowes, Dane Cleaver, Ben Lister, Adam Milne, James Neesham, Henry Shipley, Blair Tickner
ODI: Tom Latham (c), Henry Nicholls, Tom Blundell, Cole McConchie, Daryl Mitchell, Rachin Ravindra, Ish Sodhi, Will Young, Chad Bowes, Ben Lister, Adam Milne, James Neesham, Henry Shipley, Blair Tickner
Pakistan squads
T20I: Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-captain), Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Ihsanullah, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shan Masood, and Zaman Khan
ODI: Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-captain), Abdullah Shafique, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Haris Sohail, Ihsanullah, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Wasim Jr., Naseem Shah, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shan Masood and Usama Mir. Reserves: Abbas Afridi, Abrar Ahmed, and Tayyab Tahir
