![COLOMBO: Pakistan opener Imam-ul-Haq plays a defensive shot during the warm-up match against Sri Lanka Cricket XI at the Colombo Colts Cricket Club ground on Wednesday.—Courtesy PCB](https://i.dawn.com/primary/2022/07/62cf73f390256.jpg)
KARACHI: Despite Sri Lanka having proclaimed a state of emergency, Pakistan will still play the two-test series there.
Already in Sri Lanka, Pakistan completed a three-day tour match against the Sri Lanka Cricket XI in Colombo against the backdrop of widespread protests against the country’s worsening economic situation.
The first Test is scheduled to be played in Galle starting on Saturday, and the series will go as scheduled, a PCB spokeswoman said on Wednesday.
An all-format series between Sri Lanka and Australia that included Twenty20 internationals, one-day internationals, and tests was finished last week.
The island nation of Sri Lanka imposed a state of emergency on Wednesday after President Gotabaya Rajapaksa left the country over demonstrations. With his wife and two bodyguards, Rajapaksa boarded a military plane and flew to the Maldives.
On Wednesday, a large crowd also broke into Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe’s palace, further complicating matters. The military of the nation has been obliged to intervene and advise civilians not to do this.
Curfews have been imposed throughout Colombo, leaving Sri Lanka in an unrest and despair. Sri Lanka’s national television network, Rupavahini, briefly suspended broadcasting. Later, the broadcast resumed.
Bangladesh has been placed on standby by the Asian Cricket Council to host the Asia Cup, which Sri Lanka was scheduled to host next month.
According to SLC Chief Executive Ashley de Silva, missing out on hosting the Asia Cup would cost the company US$5–6 million in lost income.