Bopara's Karachi Kings side take on Peshawar Zalmi in the second semi-final in Dubai and, if successful, the 31-year-old Essex player will be making a journey the likes of Kevin Pietersen, Tymal Mills and Luke Wright have already deemed unsafe.
Pakistan has not hosted major international cricket since the Sri Lankan team bus was involved in a terrorist attack in 2009, an incident which took place close to Lahore's Gaddafi Stadium and claimed the lives of six policemen and two civilians.
The Professional Cricketers' Association and FICA, the international equivalent, have advised against taking part in a Lahore-based finale but Bopara tweeted: "If we win tonight I will travel to Lahore for the final."
The group stages and knockout matches of the PSL Twenty20 competition have been held in Pakistan's adopted home of the United Arab Emirates but the showpiece is due to take place at the Gaddafi.
Overseas players were given the option not to play in Lahore, where there have been at least two further deadly attacks this year, though financial incentives also existed by way of additional appearance bonuses.
The English trio of Pietersen, Wright and Mills quickly announced they would not attend once their Quetta Gladiators side qualified, while fellow foreign imports Brendon McCullum and Rilee Rossouw have pulled out too.
International commentators Danny Morrison, Mel Jones and Alan Wilkins are also reported to have made themselves unavailable and Sunset&Vine, the television production house responsible for delivering the rest of the tournament, are not involved with the final
No comments:
Post a Comment