On Sunday, February 1, Pakistan once again showed how much India plays on their mind. The U19 World Cup Super 6s tie between the two teams witnessed an abject surrender, as Pakistan didn’t even attempt to chase 253 runs in 33.3 overs to seal a semi-final berth; instead, it showed that they would be content with just a win. However, they failed in that pursuit too, registering a comprehensive 58-run defeat. If there was nothing else significant, then how Pakistan approached the chase would have made global headlines. But trust Pakistan to redefine the term baffling. Hours before the conclusion of the U19 World Cup fixture, the Government of Pakistan announced that the senior men’s team wouldn’t take the field against India in the Men’s T20 World Cup.
One expected the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to continue with the theatrics, given how the chief, Mohsin Naqvi, ramped up his charges against the International Cricket Council (ICC). Ever since Bangladesh was replaced by Scotland in the T20 World Cup following the former’s refusal to travel to India due to security concerns, Pakistan felt aggrieved, even more than Bangladesh. Please make it make sense.
Repeated meetings were held between Naqvi and Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, and on Sunday, the go-ahead was finally given to participate in the 20-team tournament, which gets underway on February 7. However, once it was announced that Pakistan wouldn’t take the field against India on February 15 in Colombo, the decision clearly shows that Pakistan put on a front of supporting Bangladesh while the focus was always on hurting the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
Also Read: Pakistan boycott India at T20 World Cup: Moral stand, power play or a pre-emptive escape from humiliation
Pakistan might have wanted to hurt the BCCI and ICC by boycotting the fixture against India. Yes, everyone involved is slated to incur losses as the match between the two rivals has always been a major cash cow. But just to win a minor battle, Pakistan are perhaps once again losing sight of the bigger picture, and they might end up conceding the war.
The ICC has given Pakistan time to ponder over its decision, but by now the world knows the apex body wouldn’t shy away from taking the call, as proven earlier when Bangladesh was shown the door after trying to play hardball.
Pakistan cricket might just be buried
When it comes to sanctions, it is fair to say that Pakistan has chosen to play with fire. Considering that the match between the two teams was to be played at a neutral venue, Pakistan don’t have grounds to stand on and defend the call. The only argument is that the call was dictated by the government, but even then, the ICC can impose several actions that could bury Pakistan cricket.
The decision not to play against India is clearly a violation of the ICC tournament guidelines; hence, the world body can even ban the team from the entire competition if push comes to shove. Unlike the BCCI, the PCB’s major source of income is ICC revenue, and even that could be withheld because of Pakistan’s latest move. The broadcaster that rakes in the moolah from the India-Pakistan match can also sue the PCB, and the ICC can force Pakistan’s hand, requiring it to pay full compensation to the official broadcaster Jio-Star for revenue loss.
Pakistan could also be barred from hosting international tournaments, including bilateral cricket matches against teams such as Pakistan, England, and South Africa. It is worth mentioning that the decision to leave Bangladesh out of the T20 World Cup was not taken unilaterally by the ICC, as all the 14 members ICC Board, apart from Pakistan and Bangladesh, voted in favour of maintaining the sanctity of the original schedule, which basically implies that Pakistan has gone against the majority of the ICC Board.
Lastly, the Pakistan Super League (PSL), which has been recognised by the ICC, might be relegated to a local tournament if foreign players are barred from participating.
Hurting no one apart from itself
The latest act by Pakistan is a classic case of cutting one’s nose just to end up spite own face. The India-Pakistan contest is a major cash cow for everyone involved, agreed. But don’t forget the earnings don’t even make up 5 per cent of BCCI’s annual income, as the bulk of the revenue comes from bilateral arrangements and the Indian Premier League (IPL). However, the same cannot be said for the PCB.
The ICC’s annual revenue is estimated at USD 500-600 million. From the annual income, the bulk of the share goes to India, as everyone knows. Pakistan gets almost 6-7 per cent of the share, which goes up to USD 36 million. According to previously published data, Pakistan doesn’t earn more than USD 60 million annually; hence, the bulk of the share has come from the ICC.
So, what happens if the ICC decide to snap it all up? One doesn’t need to be a scientist to figure that out. In trying to hurt India or the ICC, Pakistan are simply shooting itself in the foot; the case cannot be simpler than that.
Pakistan display opportunistic behaviour
Lastly, one needs to remember that Pakistan never spoke of boycotting the fixture against India in the Champions Trophy or the Asia Cup. In the Champions Trophy, India refused to travel to Pakistan and while in the latter tournament, everyone knows what happened – the handshake gate and whatnot. Pakistan had more reasons to boycott the fixture then.
Pakistan have now clearly taken the call, as the ICC were under pressure following what happened with Bangladesh and their last-minute exit from the tournament. Given the timing, Pakistan decided to go ahead with launching another threat. But one needs to remember that this might just hamper the men’s team’s performance in the T20 World Cup.
If the game against India doesn’t go ahead, the latter would be awarded 2 points. In the last edition, Pakistan lost to the USA, and they must face them again. Not to be forgotten, the forfeiture against India will also significantly impact Pakistan’s net run rate. When a game is forfeited, the guilty party’s net run rate is calculated as if they had scored zero runs.
Clause 16.10.7 of the T20 World Cup playing conditions states that “the net run rate of the defaulting team shall be affected in that the full 20 overs of the defaulting team’s innings in such forfeited match shall be taken into account in calculating the average runs per over of the defaulting team over the course of the relevant portion of the competition.”
The growing controversy marks yet another ugly chapter in the cricket ties between India and Pakistan. However, the latest flashpoint should signal to the ICC to stop clubbing the two teams together in the group stage of every event just to ensure there’s at least one match between the rivals. The last few months have shown that there is nothing civil in the relations between the two countries. If the teams draw each other in the knockouts, then so be it.
