A threat to New Zealand’s cricket team that prompted them to call off a tour of Pakistan came in an email that originated in India, Pakistan’s information minister said on Wednesday.
New Zealand’s cricket squad arrived home on Wednesday after abandoning their tour of Pakistan last week citing a security threat. New Zealand Cricket (NZC) said they were aware of a “specific and credible” threat but did not give details.
Pakistan’s information minister Fawad Chaudhry said the threat had come via an email.
“This email was generated from India through a VPN showing the location of Singapore,” Chaudhry told reporters in Pakistan’s capital.
India’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to requests for a comment.
Chaudhry added that the West Indies team, due to arrive in December, had also been sent a threat that he said was fake.
Shunned by all after a deadly 2009 attack on the Sri Lanka team bus in Lahore, Pakistan have been trying to woo back top international teams.
New Zealand’s withdrawal dealt a massive blow to Pakistan’s hopes of staging regular international cricket, with England subsequently calling off their men’s and women’s tours.
‘ECB decision’
The British government did not advise the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) to cancel its tour of Pakistan on security grounds, the UK’s high commissioner in Islamabad has said as he promised to “redouble” efforts to make the T20I series happen in 2022.
Christian Turner, the British high commissioner to Pakistan, said the ECB decided on its own to cancel the tour and he shared the “deep sadness” of Pakistani fans.
“This was a decision made by the ECB, which is independent of the British government, based on concerns for player welfare,” Turner said in a video on his Twitter handle.
“The British high commission supported the tour, did not advise against it on security grounds, and our travel advice for Pakistan has not changed.”
Turner said he intends to make sure England tour Pakistan in the later part of next year.