Pakistan insist England’s historic T20 tour of the country ‘will proceed as planned’ despite floods

England’s historic tour of Pakistan next month will not be affected by the floods that have devastated the country.

Jos Buttler’s Twenty20 team are due to land in Karachi in a fortnight to take on Pakistan in seven Twenty20 internationals, the first four in that city and the latter three in Lahore, finishing on October 2.

One third of the country has been submerged, roads and bridges have been washed away and an estimated 33 million people have been hit by the heaviest rainfall there in a decade. 

One third of the country has been submerged, and roads and bridges have been washed away

The monster monsoon season has accounted for more than 1,000 deaths since it opened at the end of June.

But a Pakistan Cricket Board spokesperson told Sportsmail ‘there will be no impact and the matches will proceed as planned.’

Pakistan’s monsoon season usually ends at this time of year but the unprecedented, non-stop deluge over the past eight weeks has left huge swathes of the country under water and approximately a seventh of the population dealing with catastrophic consequences of flash flooding.

England have not toured Pakistan for 17 years but committed to a seven-match trip ahead of October’s Twenty20 World Cup after the ECB pulled out out of a whistle-stop visit last September, citing concerns over ‘mental and physical well-being’ of their players.

Jos Buttler’s team are due to land in Karachi in a fortnight to play seven T20 internationals

An estimated 33 million people have been hit by the heaviest rainfall there in a decade

They are scheduled to return for three Tests in December that will carry World Test Championship points.

Nearly half a million desperate Pakistanis have sought shelter in camps after torrential floods destroyed their homes.

The country’s climate minister warned that Pakistan is on the ‘front line’ of the world’s climate crisis after unprecedented monsoon rains wracked the country since mid-June, killing more than 1,136 people.

The rains stopped more than two days ago and floods in some areas were receding.

The Indus River is on the verge of breaking its banks which could overwhelm a third of the country

But Pakistanis in many parts of the country were still wading through waters that filled their homes or covered their town’s streets as they struggled with how to deal with the damage to homes and businesses.

A huge relief effort is now underway to tackle distress calls, with millions of acres of farmland also at risk.

The Indus River is on the verge of breaking its banks which could overwhelm a third of the country with flooding – an area roughly the size of Britain.

Pakistan’s international appeal for aid on Sunday was answered first by Turkey and the United Arab Emirates, who airlifted supplies.

Climate minister Sherry Rehman and meteorologists told the Associated Press (AP) that new monsoons were expected in September.

Pakistani minister of climate change Sherry Rehman says the country is as the forefront of the world’s climate crisis