Pak to ‘host’ Australia in a Test series in England

Pakistan and Australia will face each other in three Tests  in England.

The proposed series will be played from the second week of August to the first week of September in 2010.

"Pakistan has started the discussion about playing three Test matches at neutral venues in England in 2010. It's a work in progress, the PCB is responsible for coming up with the arrangements, but in principle we've been comfortable and (we're) talking with them,” The News quoted Cricket Australia (CA) spokesman Peter Young, as saying.

After Australia refused to visit Pakistan, last year, citing security reasons, the Kangaroos had promised to compensate by touring Pakistan in 2009 for a one-day series and then in 2010 for the Tests. But the one-day series was later shifted to Abu Dhabi and Dubai after CA expressed apprehensions about sending the team to Pakistan.

Though an official announcement about the Test series is yet to made, it is almost certain that after the attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore, Australia will not visit Pakistan.

Referring to a discussion between  Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) chief  Ijaz Butt and his England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) counterpart Giles Clarke, PCB chief operating officer, Saleem Altaf said both  cricket boards’ had discussed the possibility of hosting Australia in England last year itself.