Australia arrive for first Pakistan tour in 24 years

Australia flew into Pakistan on Sunday for their first cricket tour in nearly a quarter of a century — and into a high-security bubble that will envelop them throughout their six-week stay.

Welcome @patcummins30
Great to have you and the Australian side here.#PAKvAUS #BoysAreReady 👊👊 pic.twitter.com/9odDz0p7E2

— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) February 27, 2022

Senior batsman Steve Smith posted a picture on Twitter of the 35-strong Australia tour party inside their charter flight’s cabin after it touched down in the Pakistan capital, Islamabad. Local officials confirmed their arrival.

Arrived in 🇵🇰 pic.twitter.com/pnis0ckFeO

— Steve Smith (@stevesmith49) February 27, 2022

Pakistan have struggled to attract visiting sides since a fatal terror attack on the visiting Sri Lanka team’s bus in 2009. Australia pulled out of a tour five years earlier after a suicide blast at a Lahore church.

They last played in Pakistan in 1998, winning the three-Test series 1-0 and blanking the hosts in the three one-day internationals.