Lahore, June 19 : The International Cricket Council (ICC) has said that the forthcoming Champions Trophy would be held in Pakistan from September 11-28, but it would closely monitor security conditions in the host country ahead of the tourney.

ICC's acting chief executive Dave Richardson said that Pakistan "had the ability" to host the event.

"So far it has been decided to go ahead with the event in Pakistan. The country has the ability to host the event," the Daily Times quoted Richardson as saying at a news conference here.

The ICC's executive board will be meeting in Dubai later this month and will discuss the security situation in Pakistan.

"The board will make a decision as to the staging of the event because the Champions Trophy is one of the most important events in cricket calendar and it pits the best against the best," said Richardson.

He insisted that safety concerns expressed by the Federation of International Cricketers' Association (FICA) were premature. "We might expect some concerns from the players and we understand that security of players, media and all stake-holders are the responsibility of the ICC. We are monitoring the situation on regular basis," he added.

Richardson said that if the majority of the executive board members wanted the Champions Trophy to go ahead in Pakistan, then any country backing out for any reason would have to face the consequences and penalties.

Earlier, in March Australia had postponed their tour of Pakistan due to security fears that forced the PCB to invite Bangladesh for a five-match one-day series.

ANI