Pakistan expects tri-series in South Africa

The Pakistan Cricket Board expects to play a triangular one-day series in South Africa next month, filling the void left by the late postponement of the ICC Champions Trophy.

RAWALPINDI // The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) expect to play a triangular one-day series in South Africa next month, filling the void left by the late postponement of the ICC Champions Trophy. Sri Lanka are expected to be announced as the third team in the hastily arranged tournament. "Yes, we are in constant touch with both Sri Lanka and South Africa and the chances are that the triangular series will be played next month," the PCB spokesman Mansoor Suhail revealed. The tentative dates of the triangular series are Sept 12-28. Pakistan was supposed to host the eight-nation Champions Trophy during the same period, but the International Cricket Council had to postpone the event earlier this week after four nations - Australia, England, South Africa and New Zealand - expressed strong reservations about security threats in Pakistan. South Africa pre-empted the ICC decision by announcing days earlier that they would not be touring in Pakistan. The Champions Trophy was postponed until 2009, with no dates set as yet. "We wanted to fill the gap and that's why we have made some serious efforts to have some international cricket," Mr Suhail said. "Venues and final dates of the triangular series will be finalised in the next couple of days," he added. The PCB official said that it could have been a quadrangular series, but India turned down an invitation. Pakistan's only one-day series this year had been last month's Asia Cup and series against lowly ranked Zimbabwe and Bangladesh. Pakistan failed to qualify for the Asia Cup finale at Karachi, as Sri Lanka defended their title by defeating India in the final. Due to ever-rising security concerns, Australia earlier this year also postponed a scheduled tour to Pakistan.

*AP