THE recent chain of events within the cricketing world between Pakistan and India are less than ideal for the former, making one wonder why they could not be managed a bit more prudently. Regardless of what the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) says in this regard, the fact cannot be denied that we got the short end of the stick.

India is hosting the 2023 ICC World Cup starting in October this year. There will be 10 national teams taking part in the tournament. Each team will be playing nine matches on a round-robin league basis. The last four teams will play the semifinals. The final will be played in mid-November, most probably in the Indian city of Ahmedabad.

Earlier, Pakistan will be hosting the Asia Cup in August-September. Six teams will be participating in the event. India refused to travel to Pakistan and suggested a change in the venue from Pakistan to either Sri Lanka, Malaysia or the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Jay Shah, the Secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), who is also the chairman of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC), on the sidelines of the Indian Premier League (IPL) finals, persuaded the heads of Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka cricket to boycott the Asia Cup if held in Pakistan.

The PCB chief at the time conceded ground, and suggested a hybrid formula to hold four first-round matches in Pakistan and the remaining nine, including the final, in Sri Lanka. India clearly won the deal hands down. All that the PCB could do was to give the whole thing a public relations twist, which did not quite cut it with the masses.

All through the lengthy affair, Pakistan, currently ranked number two in ODI world ranking, kept threatening that it would boycott the Word Cup if India refused to travel to Pakistan for the Asia Cup. But later, the PCB bent its knees and agreed to participate in the World Cup on the terms and conditions that were framed by BCCI to its benefit. The PCB decision, as such, is nothing but an embarrassment.

Since the visit of the national cricket team is still subject to clearance from the government, there is still a tier left to save the nation from further humiliation. The government should not allow the team to participate in the World Cup being held in India as a simple tit-for-tat strategy. It is only a fair deal, and we should go for it.

S. Zaki Hasan
Karachi

Published in Dawn, July 9th, 2023