'Real life Call of Duty' - South African spinner Tabraiz Shamsi impressed with security arrangements in Pakistan

South Africa will lock horns against Pakistan in a two-match Test series, starting from January 26 at National Stadium in Karachi followed by a three-match T20I series that will run from February 11 to February 14 at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. Ahead of the marquee series, a 21-member South African squad reached Pakistan on Saturday, January 16.

All the players had undergone two Covid-19 tests before their departure from Johannesburg and had tested negative for the deadly virus. The players will again be tested for the coronavirus in Pakistan and will have to practice individual isolation until the reports of all the players come out negative.

Following this, if everything goes well then the visiting players will be allowed to practice and train in the ground adjacent to their hotel while they will be allowed to train at National Stadium in Karachi, Pakistan after serving a mandatory quarantine period as per the guidelines laid out by Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) owing to the ongoing pandemic.

Tabraiz Shamsi lauds Pakistan for tight security

The cricket teams and the respective cricket boards are generally not interested in sending their players to Pakistan owing to security concerns. As a result, most of the time, PCB has to host the home matches in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). However, the scenario is slowly changing as other countries are now planning to schedule their visit to Pakistan to play cricket.

South Africa’s cricket team arrived with the Asian nation after a long span of 14 years and looked impressed with the tight security provided by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). The Proteas spinner Tabraiz Shamsi took to his official Twitter handle to laud the authorities for the tight security in Pakistan after they arrived in Karachi on Saturday.

The team, led by wicketkeeper-batsman Quinton de Kock, was whisked from the airport under state-head level security accorded by the hosts, the Pakistan Cricket Board. Tabraiz wrote back to back two tweets to appreciate the safety arrangements.

The spinner tweeted, “Security is Tight!”

Sharing a picture of Pakistan security officials sporting guns in their hands, the Proteas cricketer compared them to the famous game, ‘Call of Duty’.

“Real life Call Of Duty Smiling face with sunglasses. These guys aren’t playing with small guns and they mean business!” Shamsi wrote.