BCCI and PCB discuss alternate venues for India-Pakistan matches

What’s the story?

BCCI and PCB held a meeting in Dubai on Monday to discuss bilateral ties between the two nations despite Indian Sports Minister Vijay Goel standing firm by the government’s decision to not resume any bilateral series between India and Pakistan till cross-border terrorism activities do not stop.

Even though nothing solid came out of the meeting, it is understood that both boards are looking for multi-national venues where India can play Pakistan. Both teams might even feature in a tri-series in Sri Lanka next year as a part of the Islanders' celebration of their 60^th year of independence.

An Indian board official stated, “Both boards are aware that bilateral cricket can’t resume under prevailing circumstances. And we want to move forward. There is no point suing each other and making it more complicated. The PCB completely understood that. Pakistan is even open to coming down to India, but we cannot commit to it until we speak to our members and get a go-ahead from the government.

“There were talks of playing each other in multilateral events. But chances of Pakistan playing in Florida are minimal because the window is short, but Sri Lanka could be a possibility. We have had talks on this before.”

Following the meeting, BCCI stated, “The meeting was held in a cordial atmosphere and its outcome will be shared with the members of their respective boards.”

In case you did not know

Sports Minister Vijay Goel has ruled out the possibility of any bilateral series between India and Pakistan till terrorism continues in Pakistan. This decision had been taken by the government despite the cricketing boards of both nations signing a MoU to conduct five bilateral series between India and Pakistan between 2015 and 2023.

The heart of the matter

The decision to explore new venues was made when the BCCI being represented by Secretary Amitabh Choudhary, CEO Rahul Johri and MV Sridhar, told PCB chief Shahryar Khan that they cannot organise any Indo-Pak series until they get any allowance from the government.

There have also been claims that PCB requested the BCCI to accommodate Pakistan in a four-nation tournament in Florida featuring India, Australia, and South Africa.

Following the government’s decision regarding Indo-Pak series, PCB had sent a legal notice to BCCI claiming compensation of USD 60 million. After Goel’s decision to stand firm on the government’s decision, PCB have begun holding talks with the BCCI regarding alternate venues for Indo-Pak series with the most likely option being having matches between both teams at multi-nation tournaments.

What’s next?

With no possibility of a future Indo-Pak series as of now, fans of both nations will be eagerly awaiting their Champions Trophy clash on the 4^th of June at Edgbaston.

Author’s Take

Given the present political scenario between both countries and the amount of terrorism that has been going on in Pakistan, the possibility of a bilateral series between India and Pakistan looks very bleak. Hence, as of now, we can only hope to see India-Pakistan matches in tri-series or at ICC tournaments.