New Zealand Cricket (NZC) are mulling over an offer to tour Pakistan for the first time in 15 years.

The cricketing board has received an invitation from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to play T20I matches in the country later this year.

“NZC has received a request from the PCB chairman for New Zealand to play in Pakistan,” a spokesperson for NZC said on Wednesday.

“At the moment NZC is doing due diligence on the request and consulting with security providers, the government, and the players. We will respond to the PCB when this process has been completed,” the statement added.

New Zealand had to abandon their tour of Pakistan in 2002 midway through after a bomb exploded outside their team hotel in Karachi. But, the Blackcaps did return to the country to play the ODI series in 2003.

That was the last time the Kiwis toured Pakistan as the scheduled 2009 series was also cancelled due to the terror attacks on the visiting Sri Lankan team bus in Lahore.

Alongside New Zealand, the PCB is also reportedly set to offer Australia the chance to play a series on home soil.

Declining to confirm an approach for the same from PCB, a Cricket Australia spokesperson has said that the UAE will remain the venue for the next bilateral series between the two countries.

“The safety and security of Australian players is our number one priority. From an Australia team perspective, we are not contemplating moving our current bilateral-tour arrangements from taking on Pakistan in the Middle East, when they host the next series,” the spokesperson had said.