Pak vs Aus: Steve Smith says Aussies feel ‘incredibly safe’ in Pakistan

RAWALPINDI: Expressing his satisfaction over the foolproof security measures made by the authorities, Australia’s renowned cricketer Steve Smith Tuesday said that they feel “incredibly safe” in Pakistan.

Addressing a virtual press conference ahead of the first Test in Rawalpindi, Steve Smith said that he always wanted to play in Pakistan. He maintained that all the members of the Australian squad were very excited about the Pakistan tour.

“We are happy to have our first foreign tour after the Ashes series in 2019,” he added.

Responding to a question, he said that it is not yet known what kind of pitches will be available in the country, adding that they will get a chance to see that stadium and the pitch during the first practice session.

Replying to another query, Smith said they have three spinners for the series against the home side. He said Pakistan has also world-class players. 

Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf are among the fastest bowlers in the world, he added.

Speaking on the occasion, he also hailed Pat Cummins’s captaincy.

Family of Australian player on Pakistan tour receives threats from India

In a bid to sabotage Australia’s historic tour of Pakistan and to sabotage international cricket in the country, a person from India has reportedly sent threats to the family of an Australian cricketer and has warned them of "dire consequences" if he travels to Rawalpindi, security sources had revealed on Monday.

Per sources, the family of the Australian cricketer, who is part of the Aussies squad and whose name has been concealed due to security reasons, was sent threatening messages via a fake Instagram account —jyot.isharma391 — and warned him against playing in Pakistan.

The security sources had said that the Instagram account was being handled from India’s Gujarat state. Providing further details of the account, the well-informed sources had said that the Gujarat-based Mridul Tiwari, who is working as an environmental, health and safety officer at the IMC Limited, had issued threatening messages to the cricketer’s family. His e-mail address is mridul.tiwari07.com, while his phone number is 00917060185885.

“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, the PCB had said in a statement. 

“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.”

India had been using "notorious tactics" in the past to make Pakistan a no-go zone for international cricket, sources had said.

Earlier, West Indian cricketers were also issued threats to stop them from visiting Pakistan. The players had talked about the threats on social media and had asked their followers whether they should be opting for the Indian Premier League (IPL) or the Pakistani tour.

New Zealand and England Cricket Board (ECB) had cancelled their scheduled tour after receiving the same types of threats.