The PCB clarified that chairman Najam Sethi had not considered the Pakistan team playing their ODI World Cup matches in Bangladesh instead of India. , Photo Credit: AP
The Pakistan Cricket Board on Friday clarified that its chairman Najam Sethi never put forward the view at any ICC board meeting that the national men’s team was keen to play its World Cup matches in Bangladesh instead of India.
On 29 March it was reported that the ICC had denied that any such discussion had taken place in the ICC Forum and that Bangladesh is not in contention to host any World Cup matches as the BCCI had assured that Pakistan would be able to host the team. Visa will not be a problem.
The PCB clarified that the concept of the “hybrid model” of the tournament was strictly related to the Asia Cup as India would not be traveling to Pakistan.
“Referring to the media briefing in Rawalpindi/Islamabad on Thursday, Mr. Najam Sethi said that he had briefed the media about the hybrid model that he had presented to the ACC officials for the ACC Asia Cup to end the impasse Which was born after the BCCI’s decision not to send its team to Pakistan
“The proposal to play India’s matches at neutral venues and the rest in Pakistan is under consideration of the ACC,” a PCB media release said.
Sethi said that a section of the media had misrepresented him.
“At no stage during Thursday’s media interaction, did I make any reference to the ICC or make any comment on the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023, which is scheduled in October. The matter has so far been mooted in any ICC forum or has not been discussed, Sethi said in the press release.
PTI had spoken to ICC sources on Wednesday who mentioned that the matter was neither raised nor discussed informally and is a “fantasy of fiction”.
The PCB responded via a media release to one of its local English outlets.
“In this backdrop, the PCB is disappointed that a leading English-language newspaper has misquoted, misinterpreted and misrepresented Mr Sethi’s comments and given the impression that PCB’s hybrid model as presented at the ICC was done and discussed, which is factually incorrect.
“At this stage, the PCB is only in discussion with the ACC regarding hosting the ACC Asia Cup and there has been no discussion with the ICC regarding the World Cup.”
However, in order to pacify the country’s media after the heavy loss, the PCB mentioned in its press release that the concept of ‘hybrid model’ can be discussed later, but even the bigwigs know That any such recommendation would be rejected at the outset.
“This is not to say that the hybrid model will not be advocated in the appropriate ICC forum at the right time,” it concluded.
It should be mentioned that there is little chance that ACC will pass the budget of Pakistan playing Asia Cup matches at home instead of UAE or Qatar.
The only possibility would be that the PCB would have to bear the entire cost, including the logistics, of the broadcasters to host the matches in their country.