'Pakistan's dignity hurt by chairman's statement'

LAHORE: Former Chairman Pakistan Cricket Board Khalid Mehmood has said that no one including India has the guts to stop Pakistan cricket.

It has been busy for years trying to isolate Pakistan but every attempt and conspiracy it has been hatching has failed, said Khalid while talking to a selected group of journalists here. “We still won the World Twenty20 Championship in 2009, became number one in the ICC Test rankings, became number one in the Twenty20 and also won the Champions Trophy in 2017, he said.

He further stated that these achievements are an expression of strength of Pakistan. “Ramiz Raja's statements regarding International Cricket Council funds and Indian investment are unnecessary. ICC funds are Pakistan's right and these funds are distributed among the member countries.

“Raja's statement is against national dignity,” he added.

The former PCB chairman made it clear that ICC funding is not a donation. It is a business and everyone, including Pakistan, benefits from it. Ramiz should immediately apologise and refrain from using such words in future, he added.

“Ramiz Raja, on the one hand, is in favor of shutting down departmental cricket, and on the other hand, he is meeting businessmen for investment. Weren't the departments investing heavily in our cricket? Various departments used to spend crores of rupees annually on cricket. They are now expecting sponsorship from them. What can the foreign coaches hired for the World Cup improve in a few days?

“As many players as there are, officials are traveling with the team. Is this not waste of capital? Finding new investors after eliminating the role of departments is not a good strategy,” he said.