PCB turns down request to allow player’s families to stay on the tour

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has turned down the player’s request to allow their families to accompany them on the current tour of England. PCB chief Shahryar Khan confirmed that he had received a request from Pakistan team manager Intikhab Alam as the latter attempted to get approval to allow the same. The board had already made it clear at the start of the tour that wives and children will be allowed to accompany the players only until the second Test in Manchester.

“They asked Intikhab to get approval from the board that they could have their families stay with them until the third Test although the agreement was that the families would return home after the second test,” a source told the Press Trust of India on Tuesday (July 26). “But the PCB Chairman, Shaharyar Khan who is in England at the moment after consulting his aides has turned down this demand from the players.

“The board’s point of view is that given the importance of the tour the players needed to focus on their cricket and could only have their families for the first two Tests.”

A few players including the likes of skipper Misbah-ul-Haq and senior players such as Younis Khan and Mohammad Hafeez had been accompanied by their families for the first two Test matches at Lord’s and Manchester. However, they were not allowed to stay beyond the Test at Manchester with the PCB taking the stance that their presence may affect the performance of the players on the tour.

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The players, however, have argued that spending too much time away from their families affects their cricket, especially given the fact that there is a dearth of international cricket in Pakistan at the moment. Pakistan claimed an impressive win in the first Test at Lords. However, the massive 330-run loss at Manchester brought them crashing back down to earth as they now gear up for a two-day warm-up match against Worcestershire before taking on the Brits at Edgbaston, Birmingham for the third and final Test.