PCB to receive Rs 1 billion for compensation claims against the BCCI

What’s the story?

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has been given approval of claiming rupees one billion from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) following the Indian Cricket Board’s refusal to indulge in any bilateral series against Pakistan.

PCB Chairman Shahrayar Khan refereed to how the matter has impacted their cricketing and financial affairs. "With India refusing to play us in a bilateral series, we have lost millions in revenues. Even our broadcasting contract is clear that unless Pakistan and India don't play a series or more during the tenure of the contract, a sizeable amount is deducted from the contract amount," Khan said

The Chairman also mentioned about how they will be taking the matter forward in order to file the compensation claim with the International Cricket Council (ICC). "We have hired a British law firm to represent us in the case and file the compensation claim with the (ICC's) disputes resolution committee" .

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In case you didn’t know…

The BCCI and PCB signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in 2014, agreeing to play five bilateral series against each other over the next eight years. However, following political tensions over the neighbouring countries, India backed out from the agreement.

In a previous interview, Khan said that the BCCI doesn’t consider the MOU as a binding legal agreement. He also mentioned that as per the BCCI, the government’s permission is required to take forward the Indo-Pak series, which they aren’t getting.

The heart of the matter

The PCB has been seeking compensation for quite a while now. They have already sent a notice to the BCCI asking for a compensation of USD 69 million. However, as per the PCB, India didn’t revert to the notice, which somewhat angered the Pakistan board.

They also claimed to have had several talks with the Indian officials regarding the matter. However, things hardly worked out and hence the PCB’s decision of the claim with the ICC.

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What’s next?

After several modes of communication with the BCCI, the PCB has finally approached the ICC to help them out in claiming the compensation from BCCI. Going forward, expect a few more heated series of events in the offing for the two Asian cricketing giants.

Author’s take

Cricket is a simple game played on the 22 yards between bat and ball. India and Pakistan have had several riveting encounters between them over the last many decades. They have enthralled and entertained the crowd with jaw-dropping moments of cricket with the passage of time.

Going forward, fans would want to see more games between the two countries. All we can hope is for things to fall in place for both countries and the tension between them to calm down. It will be heartening to see cricket leading the way for both nations with other issues taking a backseat.