MCC visit to help in convincing other teams to tour Pakistan: Sangakkara.

Byline: Mohammad Yaqoob

LAHORE -- Marylebone Cricket Club president Kumar Sangakkara on Thursday said MCC players were thrilled to be in Pakistan and added that their visit would address the concerns of other countries which were reluctant to tour the country.

'After 48 years for MCC and ten years for me it is wonderful to return to Pakistan. On behalf of the MCC and me we are thrilled to be here. Our visit to Pakistan will address the [security-related] concerns of other countries as well. And as the MCC is also an international club the message will be stronger since we are here to play cricket,' former Sri Lankan captain Sangakkara said at a press conference alongside PCB chief Executive Wasim Khan here on Thursday.

The London-based MCC team, which arrived in Lahore on Thursday, will play four limited-overs matches against local teams during their stay in the Provincial capital. The 12-man touring squad comprises players from English counties such as all-rounder Ravi Bopara and spinner Samit Patel.

The MCC play their first T20 match against Lahore Qalandars at the Gaddafi Stadium on Friday. The game is scheduled to start at 5.00pm. The visitors take on Pakistan Shaheens in a 50-over match at the Aitchison College ground on Monday. The MCC then compete against Northern (Feb 17) and Multan Sultans (Feb 19) in two T20 matches at the same venue.

'For the last many years the struggle has been on to bring back cricket to Pakistan and I have been part of many conversations [on this subject] in the past. And the MCC cricket committee has been a strong advocate of backing Pakistan cricket. And lot of discussion and efforts of the PCB, especially by Wasim helped to materialise the tour [of MCC],' the 42-year-old Sangakkara, who is the first non-Briton president of the MCC, added.

'When Wasim did come to present the case before the world cricket committee the passion Wasim had, we saw the arrangements and the improvement which had been made was eye opener and following that presentation the decision was very quickly made that rather than just talking about it is time to actually come and tour this wonderful cricket nation,' the left-handed Sangakkara, who featured in 134 Tests, 404 ODIs and 56 T20 Internationals for Sri Lanka from 2000 to 2015, remarked.

'I have many wonderful memories of playing here in Pakistan, particularly in Lahore. I first visited Pakistan in 2002 to play the Asian Test Championship match in Lahore. Playing against great...