Cricket: NZ to assess Sri Lanka's security

Heath Mills. Photo / Alan Gibson

New Zealand officials are heading to Sri Lanka for an on-the-spot security assessment ahead of the August-September tour to that country - and even though the trip is yet to be signed off, the itinerary is out.

The tour schedule includes two tests in Colombo, five ODIs in Colombo and nearby Dambulla and two Twenty20 internationals, also in the capital, plus warm-up three-day and one-day games, the tour to start on August 13 and run to September 19.

Before New Zealand Cricket confirm the trip, a three-strong team including New Zealand Players' Association boss Heath Mills, NZC cricket manager Geoff Allott, and an independent security adviser are due to travel to Sri Lanka on June 29.

Allott said yesterday it was not a one-off exercise and signalled a commitment to sharpening the security programme for the foreseeable future, especially in the wake of the Lahore terror attack on Sri Lankan players last March.

"It's really a sign of the times that we have to be very conscious of security round our side and have to be proactive, making sure players and management are as confident as we can about the current environment."

From Sri Lanka, the trio will head for India, where a New Zealand A team is due to play a tournament against Indian state teams, probably in Chennai, around the same time as the Sri Lankan tour.

From Sri Lanka, New Zealand fly straight to South Africa for the ODI Champions Trophy, starting around September 24.

New Zealand are through to the semifinals of the women's world Twenty20, after cleaning out South Africa by six wickets at Taunton yesterday. New Zealand will play either England or India in their semifinal on Friday.