Coronavirus pandemic halts Pakistani cricket

With Pakistan having recorded its first death from Coronavirus in early March, the nation’s Provincial and Federal Governments’ measures for the containment of the virus has led to closure of public gatherings in various institutions.

This shuttering of institutions has extended to Pakistani cricket with Provincial Government’s and sporting bodies enforcing the closure of public venues including cricket venues.

As of the middle of last month, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) postponed the Pakistan Super League (PSL), the country’s professional Twenty20 cricket competition, during the week that it entered its knockout stages.

With a sudden rise in Coronavirus cases in Pakistan and a player showing symptoms of COVID-19, the PCB announced the indefinite postponement of both the Semi Finals and Final matches of PSL, with the fixtures to be played at a later date.

The PCB allowed allowed international players, engaging in the PSL, the option to leave for their native countries if they wished to, following which 10 international players made the decision to withdraw from the matches.

Subsequently, Pakistan’s Provincial Governments enacted a statewide lockdown across the country in Punjab, Azad Kashmir, Sindh and Baluchistan on 24th March 2020 declaring a state of emergency owing to the rise in Coronavirus cases.

With the lockdown including the shutdown of all institutions, the measures were fully complied with by Pakistan’s cricket establishment across provincial lines and halted all matches and cricket stadiums in the country.

There has been no official notification or announcement concerning cricketing operations in the aftermath of the lockdown.

COVID-19 cases are increasing every day, as are the death rates, so questions pertaining to the normalcy of cricket matches and venues remain unanswered as of now.

Image shows the PSL's 2020 team captains.