13 Aug 2008

Lawson in ICC team to save Champions Trophy

9:26 am on 13 August 2008

Former Australian fast bowler Geoff Lawson will be one of the six-man delegation visiting New Zealand, Australia and England to try to convince top players to attend the Champions Trophy tournament in Pakistan in September.

Lawson is the current Pakistan team coach.

Players from Australia, England, South Africa and New Zealand have all expressed doubts about playing the September tournament in Pakistan because of a wave of Islamist militant violence in the country.

The International Cricket Council has refused to move the event but has set up a special taskforce to ensure security, including dropping the garrison city of Rawalpindi as a venue and delaying the start of the tournment one day so it did not clash with the anniversary of the September 11 terrorists attacks on the United States.