International cricket chiefs are set to delay the start of the Champions Trophy by one day and are likely to scrap one of the three venues following security advice.

The eight-team tournament was to start on September 11, the anniversary of the devastating terrorist attacks on America in 2001.

Now it is likely to start a day later.

Rawalpindi, which adjoins the capital Islamabad, is likely to be dropped as a venue, which would leave all the matches to be played in the southern port city of Karachi and the eastern cultural capital, Lahore.

The announcements came after an International Cricket Council (ICC) taskforce visited Islamabad and Lahore to assess their security arrangements.

''There was advice that we received from the security consultants that it might be better not to start the competition from the 11th and move to the 12th,'' ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat said.

''It is a strong possibility that we will reduce the Champions Trophy to two venues but the event will be played in Pakistan,'' he said, referring to the dropping of Rawalpindi.

Lorgat earlier said security could not be assessed at Rawalpindi as it did not host any Asia Cup matches.

He is leading a high-profile six-man ICC taskforce which is to oversee security arrangements.

The delegation includes former Australian off-spinner, Tim May, who is the chief executive of the Federation of International Cricketers' Associations (FICA).

The ICC last month decided to keep the biennial event in Pakistan despite security concerns raised by players from Australia, New Zealand, England and South Africa.

The players associations, and FICA, had called for a relocation of the trophy over player safety following a series of suicide bombings that prompted Australia to postpone its Pakistan tour last March.

Lorgat admitted it would be a great challenge for the taskforce to visit and convince the reluctant players to tour Pakistan for the Trophy. AFP