A five-member ICC delegation has decided to return midway through an assessment tour of Pakistan for next year’s Champions Trophy following the imposition of emergency in the country.

A Pakistan cricket Board (PCB) official confirmed that the the visiting ICC delegation has cut short the trip and will not be visiting Rawalpindi and Karachi.

The delegates will return home from Lahore on Monday morning.

“They said because of the changed political scenario in the country it would be better if they returned later on to complete the tour,” the official said.

ICC spokesman Sami-ul Hasan, who was part of the delegation, also confirmed that the trip has been called off after President Pervez Musharraf imposed a state of emergency in the country on Saturday.

Pakistan will host the 2008 Champions trophy. The PCB official said the ICC delegation had come to assess the security arrangements at the venues where the matches are planned, and pick a historical site to have the ICC annual awards.

“They were supposed to go to Sheikhupura and Karachi on Sunday and Monday but changed their programme after the emergency,” another official said.