A threat issued on social media to Ashton Agar, warning him against travelling to Pakistan, has been investigated and dismissed by the Pakistan and Australia cricket boards and government security agencies. Sydney Morning Herald reported on Monday that the threat was issued to Agar’s partner, reportedly on Instagram.
Cricket Australia and the PCB both issued a statement on the matter, saying: “Cricket Australia is aware of a social media post, of which the nature and content has been investigated by the PCB, CA and combined government security agencies. There are extensive security plans in place for this type of social media activity, which, in this case, is not considered a risk. No further comment will be made at this time.”
Australia arrived in Pakistan on Sunday for a full tour comprising three Tests, three ODIs and one T20. This is Australia’s first trip to Pakistan since 1998.
On touching down in Islamabad, Australia captain Pat Cummins had said, “I feel incredibly safe and we’ve been really well looked after by the Pakistan Cricket Board. There’s been lots of security upon arrival. We were straight off the plane and straight to the hotel.
“We’ve got a pretty good set-up and we’ll be confined to the hotel except for games and training… It’s comforting and we’re really lucky to be surrounded by so many professionals.”
The first Test begins on March 4 in Rawalpindi.
The cricket aside, it is an important series for Pakistan who had to host their home series at neutral venues for several years following a terror attack on the Sri Lanka team bus in Lahore in March 2009. Since 2015 international cricket has slowly but steadily begun to return to the country although there have only been three Test tours so far, and an incident-free visit by Australia could go a long way in changing this.
