March 22 (Reuters) - The initial matches of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) will be played behind closed doors in Lahore and Karachi, the country's cricket board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi said on Sunday, citing a fuel shortage caused by the conflict in the Middle East.
The franchise-based Twenty20 league, set to kick off on Thursday, also cancelled its opening ceremony in Lahore as it scaled back from six venues to two.
"Fans will be able to receive refunds for tickets and we apologise to them for the inconvenience... we pray that the situation in the region returns to normal soon," Naqvi, who is also Pakistan's interior minister, told a press conference.
Naqvi said the decision was taken after a meeting with the league's franchises.
"The Prime Minister (Shehbaz Sharif) requested all of Pakistan to restrict their movements because of the fuel crisis. We closed schools and instituted work from home and increased the number of Eid holidays. We don't know how long this war will last," Naqvi said.
"But we can't ask people to restrict their movements and then have 30,000 people in stadiums every day. We decided that as long as this crisis is ongoing, we will not have crowds at matches."
Naqvi said the league would streamline its operations to minimise team movement.
"We don’t know how long the current situation will persist, but hosting the PSL is essential. It's an international brand, and foreign players are involved... if we had postponed the PSL, there would be no window later to hold it," he added.
(Reporting by Chiranjit Ojha in BengaluruEditing by Christian Radnedge)
