Misbah hopes for cricket's return
Pakistan cricket captain Misbahul Haq hopes the upcoming Test series in England will help spur the return of international cricket to the South Asian nation after a seven-year absence due to security fears.
Pakistan has not staged Test matches since a 2009 gun attack on Sri Lanka's team bus in Lahore killed six Pakistani policemen and a van driver.
Improved security in Pakistan in recent years has prompted calls for international teams to return but nations have so far refused to tour a country where Islamist militants still pose a threat.
Misbah told Reuters he hoped the four-Test series in England "would help revive cricket series in Pakistan".
"It is a big tour for Pakistan," Misbah said on Thursday.
Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron also sent a good luck message to Pakistan's team, saying: "I hope that one day in the not too distant future I will be able to wish the England team a successful tour of Pakistan."
"England is a strong and balanced one," Pakistan's Muhammad Hafeez said. "Pakistan team has plenty of talent. We will try to give a quality series to the spectators and cricket fans."
Since 2009, Pakistan's national team has been hosting teams in the United Arab Emirates. Pakistan defeated England in a three-Test series in 2015, winning two matches and drawing the third.
Shaharyar Khan, chairman of Pakistan's cricket board, said he was confident Misbah's squad would hold its own against England and urged them to show their worth.
"I would say, play hard, giving no quarter to England for under Alastair Cook they are too good an outfit to not make you regret it," he said.
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