PCB preparing case against India: Shaharyar

Failure to play bilateral series

KARACHI: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Shaharyar Khan on Friday said that the Board was preparing a legal case to claim compensation for the missed series which India had to play against Pakistan as per an MoU.

“India had to play six series with Pakistan in eight years as per the MoU and of them India have already missed two,” Shaharyar said at a briefing after PCB Board of Governors meeting here at Pearl Continental. “Because the MoU had been signed before the International Cricket Council (ICC) and the world body was a party and witness to it, we are preparing a case so that we could tell India that Pakistan deserves compensation. And so we could tell the ICC that it should back Pakistan so that we could cover our losses,” he added.

However, the PCB has not yet decided whether it will hire a foreign legal firm or deal with the matter through its local legal team.

The PCB Governing Board chairman Najam Sethi and Karachi City Cricket Association (KCCA) president Professor Ijaz Farooqui was also present on the occasion.

The PCB chief said that India was arguing that its government was not permitting the Board to play series against Pakistan. “When the ICC told Indian cricket authorities to present a proof that its government had not allowed the Board to play against Pakistan, no proof was submitted,” Shaharyar said.

India has said that it would not play against Pakistan in the ICC events. “India has to play against Pakistan in Birmingham next year and the tickets of the outing have already been sold out. If India did not play then Pakistan would claim for compensation,” he said.

The Pakistan-India clash of the Champions Trophy in Birmingham will be held on June 4, 2017.

About the Pakistan Super League (PSL) final which the PCB plans to hold at Lahore, Shaharyar said from the Board’s side there was no ambiguity. “There is no doubt from our side that the PSL final will be held at Lahore. We will talk to those who don’t want to play. The security environment is much better now. Najam Sethi has also talked to the Interior Minister and Punjab Chief Minister and they are all ready to support the cause,” the PCB chief said.

“Holding the final at Lahore will open doors for other teams to come and play here. It will not only help cricket but will also encourage foreign investors and bankers to come and invest here,” Shaharyar said.

“We are preparing for it and hopefully we will hold the final at home. If we succeeded it would be a great step,” Shaharyar said. He said that the Board of Governors had given its consent that the Karachi’s High Performance Centre (HPC) inaugurated last day should be named after Hanif Mohammad and the one in Multan should be named Inzamam-ul-Haq High Performance Centre.

When asked why Kamran Akmal was not picked in Pakistan’s One-day squad for the five-match Series against Australia, Shaharyar said the selection committee and the team management decided those matters. “They also seek my input. But they are responsible to look after the selection matters,” said Shaharyar, a former bureaucrat.

He also disclosed that the BoG had authorised him to meet Basit Ali and Mehmood Hamid regarding the scuffle between them. “I was also witness to the incident which is unfortunate. Physical violence is unacceptable. No excuse is enough. I will meet with them in a couple of days and will then decide,” the chairman said. He said that women and junior cricket would be thoroughly discussed in the first week of next month. “The performances of both women and under-19 teams were pathetic. Like the senior team we will also conduct surgery in these areas and make important changes like those of selectors, coaches and skippers,” Shaharyar said.

About Pakistan’s pathetic loss in the second Test against Australia on Friday, he said he was disappointed. “It was not a game to lose. The morale which had been boosted has been shattered with the defeat,” he said.

About the inquiries in the FIA and the NAB the PCB chief said that the Board had nothing to hide. He said that it was decided in the meeting that the Board would not get any personal privileges and everything would be decided under the constitutional privileges. He said that the Governing Board also passed the PSL audit report and the previous year’s accounts.

Najam Sethi said he was happy that the external auditor gave them a clean chit regarding PSL.

He said that they were in contact with foreign players and their agents and would try to convince them to play the final at Lahore. “During the PSL I will personally meet every player and will try to convince them. On February 25 we will decide about the fate of the final. We may have to offer more money to the foreign players for the final,” Sethi added.

Soon after the briefing Sethi told reporters in an informal chat that the PSL-1 profit was 2.5 million dollars. “And this time I hope we will be able to earn three million dollars. We will earn even if we are to spend one million dollars extra on holding the final at Lahore,” Sethi said.

Sethi said that the Board plans to launch a mega club event in near future. “It’s a big project for which Rs70 million has been approved. Between 40,000 and 45,000 players will get a chance to play. We will give chance to everyone,” Sethi said.