Australia cricketer Ashton Agar received a death threat days before his side’s historic tour of Pakistan. As reported by The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, Agar’s wife Madeleine received the threat on her Instagram account, who then promptly reported it to Cricket Australia (CA) and the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
As both the cricket boards and security agencies investigated the matter, the threat was dismissed and not found credible.
“Cricket Australia is aware of a social media post, of which the nature and content has been investigated by the PCB, CA and combined government security agencies. There are extensive security plans in place for this type of social media activity, which, in this case, is not considered a risk. No further comment will be made at this time,” Cricket Australia informed in an official statement.
As Australia visits Pakistan after 24 years for an all-format tour, it marks a momentous occasion with both the teams scheduled to lock horns in three Tests, three ODIs and a lone T20I.
Meanwhile, Australia skipper Pat Cummins praised security in Pakistan as the team landed in Islamabad on Sunday.
“I feel incredibly safe and we’ve been really well looked after by the Pakistan Cricket Board. There’s been lots of security upon arrival. We were straight off the plane and straight to the hotel. We’ve got a pretty good set-up and we’ll be confined to the hotel except for games and training… It’s comforting and we’re really lucky to be surrounded by so many professionals,” Cummins said.
While Pakistan slowly aimed to bring cricket back to its home, New Zealand’s abrupt departure minutes before the start of a series was expected to bring their progress to a halt. However, the West Indies soon toured Pakistan for a T20I series which ultimately paved the path for Australia to visit the country after 1998.