Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman, Najam Sethi, lashed out at the Indian Cricket Board during his interview with renowned Indian cricket journalist, Vikrant Gupta.
Sethi pointed out the hypocrisy of the BCCI on their stance of not sending their team to Pakistan for the 2023 Asia Cup, while also expecting Pakistan to travel to India to take part in the 2023 ODI World Cup.
The newly-appointed chairman stated that if India is demanding the Asia Cup to be held at a neutral venue then Pakistan also has the right to demand the World Cup to be played at a neutral venue.
Why should we host our tournament in a neutral country? Let’s play the 2023 World Cup match between India and Pakistan at a neutral venue in Australia then.
Sethi stated that while Pakistan has made numerous efforts to get the two boards on the same page, there has been hostility from their Indian counterparts.
He said that the PCB was not consulted before the announcement of the Asia Cup schedule by the President of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC), Jay Shah, despite PCB officials requesting a response via e-mail. He further remarked that politics aside, the two cricket boards should be on talking terms so that a resolution can be reached in the near future.
In response to a question regarding Pakistan’s intentions of traveling to India for the ODI World Cup, Sethi stated that the directives will come from the government, and if they deem it safe for the team to travel to the neighboring country, then there will be no issue.
Our government will decide if we should travel to India for the 2023 World Cup or not. It they say no, then it’s a no.
The PCB chairman further stated that Pakistan is a safe country to host international teams, so there is no point in India refusing to travel to the country. He said that while Australia, England, and New Zealand have already toured Pakistan over the past year, there is no excuse left for India not to tour the country.
Watch the full interview here: