Former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Khalid Mahmood believes the chances of India visiting Pakistan for next year’s ICC Champions Trophy are very slim.
Pakistan is the host country for the tournament, which will be held in February-March. Although the tournament is just a few months away, there is still no confirmation that India will visit Pakistan for the competition.
The bilateral relationship between the two cricket governing bodies is currently suspended due to political tension. India has not visited Pakistan since 2008, while the last bilateral series between them was held in the 2012-13 season. Since then, they have only faced each other in ICC competitions and the Asia Cup.
And while only time will tell whether India will visit Pakistan or not next year, Khalid Mahmood has his doubts. The former PCB chief also said that if India decides not to cross the border, it could have huge financial and operational repercussions for both the PCB and the ICC. He also said that India’s decision not to visit Pakistan even for an ICC trophy could start a trend that could lead to other teams following the same path.
“There is very little chance of them agreeing to play in Pakistan,” Mahmood was quoted as saying by the Times of India.
“India is the richest cricketing country and has a lot of influence. If it does not send its team to Pakistan, I foresee even countries like Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Bangladesh following suit. This would basically reduce the Champions Trophy to a business where revenues would suffer, expenses would increase and profits would fall,” he added.
Khalid Mahmood’s advice to PCB:
Khalid Mahmood also advised the PCB not to adopt a retaliatory strategy against the BCCI, the world’s richest cricketing body. He said the PCB should only try to convince the BCCI to send the Indian team to Pakistan and a retaliatory strategy would only hurt the Pakistani board. Mahmood also claimed that if India does not visit Pakistan, it would defeat the purpose of hosting an ICC trophy for the country.
“Look, the point is that at this level you can only lobby and try to convince other juntas to come to your side. India has too much influence in the ICC and it would not be good for Pakistan to adopt a tit-for-tat strategy.”
“The problem is that when the BCCI says it cannot send its team and will play its matches outside Pakistan, it defeats the purpose of Pakistan hosting an ICC event,” Mahmood said.
Although the BCCI is yet to announce its final decision on the matter, it has maintained that it will act on the directives of the Indian government. The BCCI has said that it will not be able to send the Indian team to Pakistan if the government does not give permission. Last year, when Pakistan hosted the Asia Cup, India refused to travel to the country.
As a result, the ACC had to come up with a hybrid model. As a result, India played all its matches in Sri Lanka. A similar arrangement could be made for the Champions Trophy as well if India decides not to go to Pakistan next year.