Separate Stands, Entry Gates: Sharjah’s Plan to Avoid Pakistan-Afghanistan Fan Clashes In UAE Tri-Series

Separate Stands, Entry Gates: Sharjah’s Plan to Avoid Pakistan-Afghanistan Fan Clashes (Source: AP)

Pakistan will step up their preparations for the Asia Cup with a tri-series against Afghanistan and UAE in Sharjah. Pakistan were going through a miserable run in T20Is, and also lost a series against Bangladesh, but turned things around on the West Indies tour, winning the T20I series 2-1.

Afghanistan and Pakistan have shared a fierce cricket rivalry over the years, and the matches are often closely fought. There have been instances of heated exchanges between the players as well as supporters in the stands. The match is expected to see fans of both teams turn out in large numbers, and maintaining peace would be the priority of the authorities.

To avoid any unpleasant incident, the Sharjah authorities have decided to have separate stands and entry points for Pakistan and Afghanistan fans, according to a report in CricketPakistan. The series will get underway on August 29, and the final will be played on September 7.

All three teams will then participate Asia Cup that will kick off on September 9. India, Pakistan, and Oman, and the UAE are in Group A, while Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Bangladesh, and Hong Kong comprise Group B.

There were doubts whether the Asia Cup would see daylight after India-Pakistan ties hit a new low, but the tournament was given a green light after the BCCI gave its green light. The big game between India and Pakistan will take place on September 14 in Dubai. Pakistan will also play Oman on September 12 and UAE on September 17.

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