Shoaib Malik to join Pakistan team in England

The Pakistan Cricket Board has announced that veteran all-rounder Shoaib Malik will be joining the team in England after meeting his family.

“Shoaib Malik has not seen his immediate family for nearly five months due to his commitments and the subsequent international travel bans following the COVID-19 pandemic,” PCB Chief Executive Wasim Khan said, according to a press release by the board. “As travel restrictions are now slowly easing out and there is an opportunity for a family reunion, it is appropriate that at a human level we show compassion as part of our duty of care and respect Shoaib’s request.”

Wasim said that they raised the matter with the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) who understood the situation and agreed to make an exception by helping Shoaib enter the country on July 24. “Shoaib will follow the UK government’s policies on visitors entering the country before integrating with the side.”

Shoaib’s wife Sania Mirza and his one-year-old son Izhaan Mirza Malik are in India whereas the all-rounder has been staying in Sialkot since international travel was banned as part of safety measures against the coronavirus pandemic. He was representing Peshawar Zalmi in the Pakistan Super League before it was brought to a halt on March 17.

The side is scheduled to depart for Manchester for June 28. They will then move to Derbyshire for their 14-day quarantine period where they will undergo training and practice. They will take part in intra-squad fixtures compensate for the lack of practice matches due to non-availability of local teams as the ECB has not begun its domestic season.

from Coronavirus – SAMAA https://ift.tt/37KhTLL