Tom Latham shed light on the detailed happenings for last Friday when New Zealand opted out of their tour of Pakistan citing a security alert from their government.
New Zealand Cricket decided to withdraw from the entire limited-overs series after receiving last-minute security advice from the government and on-ground officials ahead of the first ODI in Rawalpindi.
Revealing what happened behind the scenes, Latham told ESPNcricinfo that the day of the opening one-dayer began like any “normal” day before a match:
“We were leaving at 12:30 (from the team hotel to the stadium), and then I got a message on my WhatsApp group that we were having a team meeting at 12 o’clock.
Everyone was sort of wondering what was up and then we got told the news that we were heading home,”
Latham said he recognises the pulling out in such circumstances is “very disappointing” for Pakistan fans and the country’s entire cricket fraternity, but players’ safety was bound to take precedence in the decision-making from NZC.
The historic tour was supposed to become New Zealand’s first to Pakistan since 2003 was cancelled on the day of the first ODI after NZC received an alert of a “specific and credible” threat directed towards the visitors.
However, the NZC refused to share the details of the threat with their Pakistani counterparts in the PCB. The members of Pakistani board previously have criticised their unilateral call of withdrawal despite the efforts made in boosting the security for the series and the Kiwis’ stay in Pakistan, leading up to the first game.
Within 24 hours, the players were shifted to Dubai where Latham, who was to lead the team in the absence of regular skipper Kane Williamson, and his men are currently staying in a safety controlled environment.
