PCB set to take legal recourse against Indian counterparts

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is absolutely miffed at the way their offers of playing India have been repeatedly turned down. As per quotes in the Tribune, PCB Chairman Shahryar Khan has cleared that they will take a legal recourse against their Indian counterparts, the BCCI.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is not keen on holding bilateral series against Pakistan owing to the political tensions between the two countries. The hitherto BCCI president till last week had clarified that there was no chance of bilateral series between the two countries.

PCB seems to be least impressed and claim that the Indian board has dishonored the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The board’s Chief Executive, Mr. Najam Sethi, cited that the two countries were scheduled to play in December 2015. However, despite frequent talks, the series never went underway. He also recalled that going to the court remains as the only option for the PCB.

“We waited two years; the series was meant to happen last year in December and talks were happening about this year as well but they didn’t say yes. I told you that I told India in South Africa that we won’t be left with any other option than to go to court. Yesterday [Saturday], we announced that the Board of Governors has decided that we will go to court and we have started exploring all the options,” Najam Sethi quoted.

He further added that the board is in talks with top lawyers in Pakistan and England. If the case is found to be strong enough and deemed appropriate, they will drag the BCCI to the court in the near future.

Also read – If PCB wish to file a case against us, let them do it: BCCI official

“I gave an interview to an Indian publication too that we understand this to be a violation of the contract. I also believe that the International Cricket Council is also a part of it. We are consulting top lawyers in Pakistan to assess the strength of our case. We will also consult lawyers in England after that and if everyone assures us that we have a strong case, we will then go to court,” he added.

Amidst all this, the PCB chief was still optimistic about a series between the two countries. He mentioned that India and Pakistan might play each other but not in a bilateral series. The involvement of a third team might see the arch rivals face off in a tri-series.

“If the tensions between Pakistan and India settle down, and if their government allows them to play us, then you might see both teams play each other. There is rumour of a tri-lateral series, and we are ready to play that even in order to break the ice. There is also a possibility that both teams play each other in a bilateral series on a neutral venue. So, a lot of decisions will be taken in 2017,” he conceded.