Pakistan one of the safest places, claims Waqar Younis as former pacer urges Australia to tour his home country

New Zealand cricket team reached Pakistan for an international tour after a long gap of 18 years. The Black Caps had last toured Pakistan in December 2003 and, hence, all eyes were on their series versus hosts Pakistan. However, the NZC pulled out of the limited-overs tour just minutes before the ODI series opener, in Rawalpindi, on security grounds on September 17. 

Following the NZC, the England Cricket Board (ECB) also pulled out of their tour of Pakistan, adding to the woes of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). Now, former Pakistan speedster and bowling coach Waqar Younis has urged Australian cricket to tour Pakistan, claiming his home country as 'the safest place in the world'.

Speaking to The Age, "I live in Sydney, my family is in Sydney – it’s the safest place in the world and I can guarantee you this place is nothing less than that. Come visit us, we will make sure we will look after you. Our security is one of the best in the world. We’ll make sure nothing of that sort will occur. When a team comes it is a different ball game. They make sure the hospitality; the security is right up there,” Younis, who recently stepped down as Pakistan's bowling coach, said.

“It was very tough with quarantine and we followed the protocols. We made sure cricket shouldn’t suffer. We went to NZ when the vaccines didn’t exist. That was one of the toughest tours I’ve attended – 14 days of quarantine was really painful,” Younis added.

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For the unversed, Australia are scheduled to tour Pakistan in 2022 but there are chances that Cricket Australia (CA) might follow NZC and ECB and withdraw from the tour, citing security concerns.