A boycott of the September Champions Trophy loomed yesterday, a day after the International Cricket Council (ICC) decided to retain Pakistan as the venue for the tournament despite safety concerns by many teams.
The ICC said the September 11-28 event will not be shifted despite concerns by England, Australia, New Zealand and South African boards, prompting player representatives to warn players against travelling.
That raised a serious possibility that some of the teams could pull out or field depleted teams, diluting the event rated as second in importance only to the World Cup.
The Australian Cricketers' Association (ACA) said concerns remained for the safety of players and they would recommend not travelling.
"The ACA continues to have serious concerns with our players touring Pakistan for the Champions Trophy and we are disappointed with the ICC," said ACA chief executive Paul Marsh.
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said it would discuss the issue before taking any decision.
"Following the board decision taken by the ICC, the ECB will be holding urgent and extensive talks with key stakeholders, especially the players and team England, to establish our position," said an ECB spokesman. "Once these discussions are complete the ECB will then make the appropriate decision."
England batsman Kevin Pietersen hoped the board would take any decision and not leave it to the players.
"The ECB are coming together I think on the third or fourth of August and the decision will probably be taken out of the players' hands which is great," said Pietersen. An ICC spokesman said it was premature to comment, a day after its executive board's decision. "We obviously want the best available players to take part in the tournament," he said. "One of the priorities for the special task force being put in place is to ensure a level of comfort for all stakeholders."