Zulqarnain, who had earlier announced that he would return to Islamabad on April 24, On Thursday told some television channels that he had put off his return plans after getting fresh death threats, which he had reported to the police in London.

Pakistan’s interior minister, Rehman Malik told reporters that he had spoken to Zulqarnain on Friday.

“I have spoken to him about these threats and we have even managed to trace the numbers from where the calls were made,” Malik said. “I have reassured him that he and his family would be provided foolproof security in Pakistan.”

But there was no direct word from Zulqarnain on his plans. The wicketkeeper stunned the cricket world last November when he fled the team hotel in Dubai during a one-day series against South Africa.

On reaching London where he applied for asylum, Zulqarnain claimed that he fled the team hotel because of threats from an unknown person to cooperate in fixing the matches or face dire consequences.