The Pakistan Cricket Board has bought four bulletproof buses in an attempt to convince other teams to tour the country.
Pakistan has been avoided as a cricketing host since 2009, when gunmen attacked a bus carrying the Sri Lankan team, injuring six players and killing six security personnel and two civilians.
The incident has forced Pakistan to play their ‘home’ matches in the United Arab Emirates and the country has since remained starved of international cricket at home. The integration back into the international fold has been slow, as Zimbabwe have been the only team to tour there since, in a limited-overs series in 2015.
‘We have bought these four Coaster buses as part of our efforts to revive international cricket in the country,’ a PCB spokesman told ESPNcricinfo.
‘There will be high expectations from teams willing to visit Pakistan and we want to ensure that we provide them with the best possible arrangements.
The spokesman added that the PCB wants to host the final of the Pakistan Super League. The inaugural edition was held in the UAE earlier this year.
‘We have to have discussions with the (overseas) players about their safety and security and I think this new addition in our security facilities will definitely give us an edge,’ the spokesman said.
‘Our ultimate goal is to revive international cricket, and we are doing our best to make sure we can.’
Photo: Lakruwan Wanniarachchi/Getty Images
