Cricket Australia is hoping to tour Pakistan in 2022, but chief executive Kevin Roberts said security remains a concern and he would never jeopardise safety of players.

Safety concerns in Pakistan

Most international teams have refused to visit South Asian nation since Sri Lankan team's bus was attacked by gunmen during a Test in Lahore in March 2009, leaving six players injured. Six policemen and two civilians were killed. Roberts returned from Pakistan on Thursday after first trip by a high-level Australian cricket delegation in more than a dece. team has t played in Pakistan since 1998 on government vice but is next scheduled to tour in early 2022. Roberts told Melbourne's SEN rio he wanted to see for himself situation on ground. 

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" purpose was really to understand landscape, look at plans y have in place around security and n start expressing our expectations for safety of our players and our support staff well over two years away from when we're due to tour," he said.

"Things are heing in right direction. In saying that we were travelling in armoured cars and escorted by police and felt very safe over re. But certainly, that level of security is still required at this point." Roberts said "We would love to see international cricket return to Pakistan", but cautioned that y would never put our people and particularly ir team in jeopardy. His comments came as Sri Lanka's cricket board this week said y would press ahe with an upcoming six-match tour of Pakistan despite fears that players could be targets of terror attacks. Asked if he could realistically see Australia touring Pakistan during his tenure, Roberts said: "I really hope we do for sake of world cricket and Australia's important relationship with Pakistan. As I said to Pakistan, we share ir desire for international cricket to return to ir country."

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"We have got next couple of years to hopefully plan for a tour in 2022 but we have just got to set that out carefully, bit by bit, rar than rushing into it."
 

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Visits by or cricket chief executives 

Roberts is in touch with or cricketing nations over issue and said his trip h triggered plans for similar visits by chief executives of England and Ireland over next month."It's really good that cricket world is opening its hearts and minds to role of Pakistan and looking proactively at what it will take to return international cricket to Pakistan," he said."Certainly, re are parts of country that are very unsafe, but re are or parts where I think a number of nations will contemplate playing again in future when Pakistan are rey." 

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