BCCI official makes no-holds-barred 'PCB leadership' revelation in brutal reply to Najam Sethi's dig at Asia Cup in SL
Former PCB chair Najam Sethi was critical of the Asia Cup being co-hosted by Sri Lanka, owing to poor weather conditions in Pallekele.
The rain threat loomed large over Asia Cup 2023 matches in Sri Lanka throughout the group stages. The highly-anticipated clash between India and Pakistan in the Asia Cup was marred by unrelenting rain, resulting in only one innings being played. Consequently, the match ended in a shared point scenario; India's final group game was also marred by rain but ensured a result as the side chased a revised target in a shortened affair in Pallekele. All three games in Sri Lanka so far have seen rain disrupting proceedings, leading to the Asian Cricket Council facing criticism over the scheduling of the tournament in the country.
In the aftermath of the India-Pakistan game's abandonment, former Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Najam Sethi, who assumed an interim role following Ramiz Raja's dismissal as PCB chairman last year, had criticized the Asian Cricket Council for the scheduling of the continental tournament. The Asia Cup's dates were subject to significant delays, originally slated to be hosted entirely by Pakistan. However, due to reservations from the BCCI regarding travel to Pakistan, Sri Lanka was chosen as a co-host.
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Sethi, in a post on social media platform X following the abandonment, stated that he had suggested United Arab Emirates as the venue for the marquee continental tournament. He stated that the suggestion was denied citing the hot weather conditions in the gulf country. “How disappointing! Rain mars the greatest contest in cricket. But this was forecast. As PCB Chair, I urged the ACC to play in UAE but poor excuses were made to accommodate Sri Lanka. Too hot in Dubai, they said. But it was as hot when the Asia Cup was played there last time in Sep 2022 or when IPL was played there in April 2014 and Sep 2020. Politics over sport. Unforgivable!” Sethi had written.
The post had since gone viral on the social media platform and on Tuesday, ACC president Jay Shah issued an official statement explaining the reasoning behind refusal to host the tournament in the UAE. Shah attributed the body's decision to host Asia Cup matches in Sri Lanka on teams' reluctance to play ODIs in the UAE heat and abrupt changes at the top of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
“The Asia Cup 2022 edition was played in the UAE in the T20 format. It's important to emphasize that the dynamics of a T20 tournament cannot be directly compared to those of a 100-over One-day format,” Shah said, as quoted by PTI.
"In this context, ACC members received feedback from their respective high-performance teams, expressing concerns about playing One-day matches in the UAE in the month of September. Such a schedule could have potentially led to player fatigue and an increased risk of injuries, particularly right before the all-important ICC Cricket World Cup.
"All the full members, media rights holder, and in-stadia rights holders were initially hesitant to commit to hosting the entire tournament in Pakistan. This reluctance stemmed from concerns related to the security and economic situation prevailing in the country," Shah said.
'Changes in PCB'
Shah explained that there was a delay in the announcement of the Asia Cup schedule due to the “several changes” in the Pakistan Cricket Board.
"In my capacity as ACC President, I was committed to finding a viable and mutually agreeable solution. To this end, I had accepted the hybrid model that was proposed by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) in collaboration with the ACC management.
"However, it's important to note that the leadership of the PCB underwent several changes, and this resulted in some back-and-forth negotiations, particularly regarding crucial aspects such as tax exemption and insurance for matches," Shah added.
