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ICC Champions Trophy in September which is going to be held in Pakistan seems to be shrouded in great uncertainty, and the alternate venues are being seriously discussed with South Africa the ultimate choice. Teams from Australia, New Zealand, England, South Africa, Sri Lanka, India and the West Indies besides Pakistan are supposed to take part in the sixth edition of the ICC event.

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) must now prepare itself for the shock of not having ICC Champions Trophy. Following are some of the concerns of the visiting teams, which show the direction of the tide.

New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori expressed in soft terms growing security concerns about staging the International Cricket Council (ICC) Champions Trophy in Pakistan this year.

Australia captain Ricky Ponting has said he doesn’t yet know if his side will travel to Pakistan for the Sept 11-28 event and raised the prospect of individual withdrawals even if the title-holders do decide to send a team.

England coach Peter Moores, in contrast to Ponting’s very public concerns, said his team would take their cue from the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).

English Players’ Association Chief Executive Sean Morris said: “We are working with the ECB on security reports which we will present to the players. Prior to that, there is bound to be a period of uncertainty.”

The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs advised its citizens to reconsider their travel to Pakistan: “If you decide to travel to Pakistan, you should exercise extreme caution”.