<p><strong>Sri Lanka to host PAK-AUS cricket series – Cricket News Update</strong></p>
<p>Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has decided to host their home series against Australia at a neutral venue, with Sri Lanka being their preferred destination.</p>
<p>The deal is expected to be finalized in the coming days after Sri Lankan Cricket Board secretary Nishantha Ranatunga and PCB director Intikhab Alam had agreed in principle to the arrangement of contesting the series, where Alam will travel to Sri Lanka next
week to sign the memorandum. </p>
<p> “Sri Lanka Cricket had expressed the desire to host the series to the PCB a month ago and both boards have no problems with it. I do not know about the stand of the other cricket board CA yet,” said Ranatunga.</p>
<p>Alam told that the board was considering South Africa and Australia as the venues but the decision of staging their home games in Sri Lanka was a viable option due to commercial and cricketing reasons.</p>
<p>“We’ve made a decision on Sri Lanka for a number of reasons which will be revealed after signing the deal,” said the former coach.</p>
<p>Earlier UAE has been the preferred option for the PCB but the hot weather in summer, coupled with the high cricketing expenses have forced the board to make a switch this time.</p>
<p>The series, scheduled for August, comprises of five ODIs and three T2O internationals. Initially, both sides were expected to contest a one-off T2O, but considering the fact that the World Cup T20 will be staged immediately after the conclusion of the series,
in Sri Lanka, two additional T20Is were added into the initial program – allowing both teams to get used to the conditions.</p>
<p>This will be the first encounter between the two sides this term, with the last one coming in the 2011 World Cup, where Pakistan emerged victorious by 4 wickets. </p>
<p>Both sides have played 87 ODIs against each other, where Australia has dominated by winning 52. The Four times World Cup champions also supersedes that ratio in the Test arena as well. Pakistan, however, have an upper hand in T2O internationals where they
have beaten the Aussies in 4 out of 7 seven matches.</p>
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