PCB moves second Pakistan–Sri Lanka Test from Lahore to Rawalpindi over smog

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board has moved the second Test between Pakistan and Sri Lanka from Lahore to Rawalpindi because of worsening smog in the Punjab capital. Announcing the change on Tuesday night, the board said the match, scheduled at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium from November 17 to 21, will now be played at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on the same dates. PCB spokesperson Amir Mir said in a post on X that the match had been relocated “due to prevailing weather conditions”, with rising smog levels and deteriorating air quality behind the call.

Lahore’s air among the worst in the world
Lahore has been gripped by severe smog for about ten days, and the city’s Air Quality Index has reportedly touched 600, placing it among the most polluted cities on earth. The global monitoring platform IQAir also rates Lahore’s air as the worst of any city in the world right now. Staging a five-day match for players, officials and spectators in those conditions had become untenable, which is why the board decided to change the venue. India faces the same problem: its board has shifted the India–Sri Lanka one-day international scheduled for December 13 in New Delhi to Visakhapatnam because of smog.

Both Tests now in Rawalpindi, first Test under way
With the switch, both Tests of the two-match series will now be played at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. The first Test is already under way there. Pakistan declared their first innings at 434 for nine, with Saud Shakeel top-scoring with 93, and Sri Lanka had reached 114 for three in their first innings at the end of day two, when bad light stopped play. The third day’s play is under way. Sri Lanka have been touring Pakistan since early October; Pakistan won the three-match T20I series 2-1 and then claimed the ODI tri-series, which also featured England. The Test series is part of the ICC World Test Championship 2025-27 cycle.