Reports: Pakistan's tour of Zimbabwe called off to protect Champions Trophy spot

The 3rd ODI between Pakistan and Zimbabwe in progress at the Gaddafi Stadium

Pakistan team's tour of Zimbabwe in August-September and a planned tri-series ODI tournament also involving West Indies have been called off after mutual understanding between the countries of Pakistan and Zimbabwe, a PCB official confirmed.

"It is true we were having second thoughts about playing a tri-series with West Indies, but the Zimbabwe Board was also facing problems securing sponsors for the tour. So basically the tour is off with mutual understanding," the official said.

"Both boards now will look for another window other than August-September this year.

"No agreement was made for either the tri-series or bilateral ODI series," the official said, quashing earlier reports.

What the decision means

Pakistan moved from ninth place to eighth in the ICC rankings after taking an unassailable 3-1 lead in the ongoing ODI series against Sri Lanka. There are no other ODI fixtures scheduled for Pakistan until the cut-off period of September 30 – the point at which the top eight ODI teams qualify for the 2017 Champions Trophy. Zimbabwe are currently the 11th ranked ODI side, and West Indies the 9th.

Had Pakistan played Zimbabwe and lost the series by a margin of 2-1 or more, it could have affected their participation in the tournament.

The PCB official said that the cricket boards of Pakistan and Zimbabwe will now try to find the next possible window for a bilateral series to be scheduled. Pakistan had initially agreed to play a limited-overs series in Zimbabwe this year to return the favour, after Zimbabwe became the first country to tour the troubled Asian nation in seven years, earlier in 2015.