Former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman, Zaka Ashraf, has said that the board had obliged cricketers to take wives with them during the last tour of Pakistan to India in order to avoid any controversial situation.
While speaking in an interview with Cricket Pakistan, the former Chairman said, “In the neighboring country, scandals are often created over small things. I did not want this to happen.”
Ashraf further stated that he had a good relationship with cricket boards and that he was considered for the chairman role of ICC, but with the change in government, everything changed.
While answering a question regarding the resumption of Indo-Pak cricket, Ashraf said that there is no problem in efforts to restore bilateral relations, adding that Pakistan should have relations with all the countries.
While commenting on the previous tour to India, he said that it was the support of former President, Asif Ali Zardari, which made Pakistan’s historic tour to India in 2012-13 possible.
While discussing the recently-concluded Australia series, he said the incumbent Army Chief, General Qamar Javed Bajwa, is playing an important role in the revival of cricket during his tenure. Providing foolproof security to the visiting teams paved the way for international matches.
It is pertinent to mention that Zaka Ashraf was appointed chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board in October 2011 by the President of Pakistan and held the responsibility until the Prime Minister of Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif, dissolved the PCB governing board in February 2014.
Zaka Ashraf was also elected as Chairman Development Committee of the Asian Cricket Council in August 2012.
