Under the campaign to resume international cricket in Pakistan, the World XI team arrived in Lahore today to play T20 series against hosts. Strong security arrangements were made on the Alma Iqbal International Airport for the arrival of the team, led by South African captain Faf du Plessis. After reaching Lahore, the players and officials of the World XI were taken to a five-star hotel on Mall Road, on which traffic was closed on all sides.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and the International Cricketer Council (ICC) had earlier announced that there will be no talks with the media on the airport.
This is a official tour of a team after the terrorist attack on the Sri Lankan team in March 2009, which required such a tight security. It included paramilitary forces and police commandos. Since the attack, no top Test team has come to Pakistan due to security concerns, and the ICC also refused to send any match referee and umpire for a limited overs series against Zimbabwe in Lahore in May 2015. But for the return of international cricket in the country, the PCB is considered to be very important for the World XI tour because it is not only received by the ICC but it was also funded by the World Operations Organization for security arrangements for security arrangements.