The three one-day international (ODI) matches that were part of the Green Shirts' planned tour of Sri Lanka have been scrapped, it emerged on Monday.

       Pakistan was originally slated to play two Tests and three ODIs when the men's team are to visit Sri Lanka in July.

       However, a spokesperson for the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) confirmed to Dawn.com that the ODIs had been scrapped at the request of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC)

       He said that SLC had requested the board to drop the three ODIs so that they could begin the Lanka Premier League (LPL) earlier.

       "The ODIs are not part of the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup Super League and SLC is facing financial challenges, so the PCB accepted the request," the PCB official said.

       He went on to say that the itinerary for the two Test matches was being worked out but said they would be played in the agreed upon window (July 5 to August 9).

       The news comes as Sri Lanka is suffering from a worsening economic crisis. Months of blackouts and acute shortages of food, fuel and medicines have caused widespread suffering across the South Asian island, which is enduring its worst-ever economic downturn.

       Additional input from Reuters