Is Pakistan becoming impossible to tour?

The blast occurred just three hours before the second Test was due to start and 14 people, including nine French nationals, were killed in the explosion.

The tour had already been rescheduled following security concerns after the 11 September terrorist attacks.

Australia's top Test cricketers have stated they will refuse to go to Pakistan - even if their board decides to proceed with the tour planned for late August.

Are tours to Pakistan now far too risky?

Australia must visit Pakistan, as it is a very important tour for both countries before the World Cup. Of course, no country wants to take a chance when there is a risk for player's life, but everyone knows the bomb was not planted for New Zealand team, but I must say, if Australians tour Pakistan, they should not make Karachi a venue for this series.
Swaleh, USA

The tour of any country to Pakistan is not impossible. I would be the first to admit that the conditions are not at all favourable but then again there is 100% security provided to the cricketers who travel here.

The incidents that have occurred are not directed to Cricket itself and if you allow terrorists to dominate your decisions then you might as well stay at home under a bed for fear of it all. Take a bold step and let the world know that you are not afraid of weirdos who are trying to create unrest
Safina Hussain, Pakistan

Teams can still come and tour Pakistan for cricket or any other sport. I think it's just because Pakistan's form is getting better and their becoming a better team, that's why every one's trying to avoid them!
Amjad Khan, England

Here we go again another tragedy, another accident, another issue has opened lots to say and lots to listen. I don't blame for the NZ team for cancelling their trip and would not be surprised by Aussie decision to cancel the tour. But to be very honest I think Aussie players were not looking forward for this tour right from the beginning. Anyhow I am really very ashamed of what has happened. We the people of Pakistan got to wake-up now before it gets too late.
Shaikh, UK

The international community must support Pakistan in this situation, the people who were behind this tragic and horriying incident wanted to isolate Pakistan. The ordinary people of Pakistan are moderate in nature. They always support peace. They love cricket.

Not to play in Pakistan is a kind of success for those who were behind the blasts. To defeat them, the international community should fight with them alongside ordinary people of Pakistan.
Syed Mohammed Tauqeer, UAE

I don't pretend to know what goes on in the 'minds' of terrorists, but it seems to me that press coverage is one of their main objectives. What better way to get the foreign press involved than to kill a few foreigners. Even better if they are there to play a high profile sport like cricket.

For this reason I wouldn't be surprised if the Kiwi's were the real target. Maybe the bomb went off prematurely, or they simply mistook the bus load of French people for the NZ cricketers. It's a possibility and a very disturbing one at that.
Frankie, Aus

This is the third time that the Kiwi team has had a close call with a bomb (twice before in Sri Lanka). Cricket is a game and players shouldn't have to put their lives on the line to play it. As it is, India and Pakistan can't play Tests any longer due to the threat of violence and yet they expect others to do differently? Until this sort of thing becomes less frequent on the sub continent, tours there shouldn't continue.
Chris Gelling, New Zealand

It's really unfortunate that such incidents still plague the country and especially Karachi. Pakistan has to put an end to all this violence and kick the extremists out of the country. Until the law and order situation is improved why would any country want to tour Pakistan? Their lives and safety is much more important that a cricket tour. I hope the Pakistani authorities never let this happen again.
Waris, USA

It was a sad incident. I don't think that anyone will visit Pakistan at least in very near future and that will really be a sad thing for the host country as well as their cricket fans. But New Zealand's concerns are understandable.

Even if the bomb would have blasted off somewhere else in the city or in another city then I think NZ would still have continued playing but this was right outside their hotel and things were damaged. It took police 10 minutes to open the doors of Shoaib's room!
Shyam, USA

Enough is enough. The constant cancellation of tours is just an excuse for the touring country, so they do not have to face Pakistan. There is already talk about the Australians not touring. This is totally ridiculous. Look what happened in Madrid. There were hundreds of thousands of supporters there. They still continued playing.

The current form of the Pakistan team is putting off the Australians playing them. Chelsea FC went to Tel Aviv. Nothing happened to them. Bombs go off in the west and nothing is cancelled. So just stop moaning, because no one can stop these few idiots who spoil it for the rest of us, and just sit back and look forward to the Pak vs Aus matches.
Raf, UK

I think that the safety of the players should be paramount and if it means no home cricket for Pakistan then that should be the case.
Gavin Smeddley, Australia

Keeping current security concerns in mind, it would be appropriate for Pakistani squad to travel to other countries and continue playing cricket.
Nadir N. Budhwani, Pakistan/USA

You cannot really blame the Pakistani authorities for what happened - there is little one can do in the face of such terrorism. Bearing in mind security was a major isssue on this tour, I am actually quite surprised the teams agreed to play in the city.

At present I cannot see how the Australians will agree to tour Pakistan. The Pakistani authorities have been left with a lot of thinking to do. In the short term the best option will probably be to play away or at neutral venues.

In the long run they should consider alternative cities to Karachi, where there have been no problems.
Moazzam Chughtai, UK

I think it is getting too unsafe to have international tours there now, for both touring teams and Pakistan. It seems as if no security measures can prevent suicide bombings like this. Pakistan may have to seek a neutral venue but 'where' is the issue.

A change of venue will have a detrimental effect on the game there. I can understand the Australians being hesitant now.
Anand Reddy, United Kingdom

People like to keep politics seperate from sport, but this never happens. Had even one New Zealand cricketer been killed, or seriously injured, it would have been the end of touring.

The fact that none were was down to luck and timing, not security. The New Zealanders had accepted that there would be risks, but should that be right? Why should a team of sportsmen have to have assurances of safety?

These questions don't just apply to Pakistan, but also Zimbabwe, and Sri Lanka. It's a shame that politics can ruin what is just supposed to be a game.
James Smith, New Zealand/Australia

I am deeply shocked to learn about the bomb blast near Pearl Continental, Karachi. I do not blame officials of both countries in cancelling the the tour. It is too early to talk about Australia's visit to Pakistan. I am sure the Pakistani authorities will take some drastic measures to stop these bombings.
Shahid Akbar, USA

It is absolutely devastating, not only for the Pakistan cricket team but also for the fans, that this tour is cancelled prematurely. And New Zealand must be very relieved because they were going to get another hammering!

I think it is unlikely that the Australians will tour Pakistan in October. However, Pakistan play Australia in three ODI matches in June and I think if Pakistan win those then there will be great pressure on Australia to tour Pakistan to prove that they are the best in the world.
Shak, UK

It does look risky. The PCB has claimed to provide the best security, but for such suicide missions I doubt if there can be any security cover. I am sure all cricket-playing nations will be very hesitant to play in Pakistan.
Raeezu, Pakistan

These incidents are happening everywhere in the world, including the United States, the most powerful country in the world. And look what happened in Madrid before the Champions League semi-final. If in Madrid they did not cancel their match, why in Karachi has the match been cancelled?
Nadeembutt, Portugal

I am very sad to read the news that New Zealand cancelled the tour of Pakistan.
Sarfraz Rafique Arain, Pakistan

To some extent I do believe that tours to Pakistan are becoming risky, especially with the concern of security. I believe that the Pakistan police and security guards have failed to protect the players of both camps and failed to do their job properly.
Raza Guppy, UK

Of course not, that's a preposterous suggestion. Such an event is a rarity in Pakistan and to condemn the side to away games forever is not right. Pakistan has a great track record of safety, and despite this event, people should trust the PCB and Pakistan Government to sort it out.
Analyzer, UK

No I don't think so, the incident which occurred was a shock to both teams but I'm sure that Pakistan will be more alert next time. Pakistan are the best and everyone knows that.
Aky, UK

The tours to Pakistan should carry on. A bomb exploded just before the Champions League football match between Real Madrid and Barcelona and they played the match. IRA bombing has been going on for years but sporting events still take place in UK, so it would be wrong not to tour Pakistan. The whole country should not suffer because of few idiots.
Riaz, UK

Well, within an hour of the bomb blast, there was already talk of Australia pulling the plug, and the ACB looks like it will most likely do that. This just goes to show no matter how hard they try, Pakistan cannot give visiting teams the protection they need.

Expect Australia to cancel it's trip, we did it in the World Cup years ago with Sri Lanka, and once again Australia pulled the plug with the Zimbabwe tour which should be taking place now. So not going to Pakistan is not a problem for Australia.
Jimmy Simms, Australia

I feel it is too risky to tour Pakistan. To come to this decision I asked one question: "Would I like my son or daughter to tour Pakistan at present?"
Mal Walker, Australia