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| October 24, 2006 | Tuesday | Ramazan 30, 1427 |
ICC panel to decide ECB claim
KARACHI, Oct 23: An International Cricket Committee disputes panel is to have the final say on England's compensation claim for lost revenue from the Oval Test against Pakistan after both boards failed to reach an agreement.
Pakistan forfeited the August match after refusing to take the field after tea on the fourth day to protest ball-tampering allegations, prompting the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) to demand £800,000 from their Pakistani counterparts.
And a PCB spokesman said: "The ICC will now constitute the disputes resolution committee and set the hearing date."
On Monday, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) director of cricket operations Saleem Altaf said that the ECB had informed his organisation that they were now taking the dispute to the ICC committee.
“They had sent us a letter setting an Oct 31 deadline for resolving the issue. We told them we were contesting their claim and in their latest letter, they have informed us they are going to the ICC,” Saleem said.
“The ICC will now constitute the disputes resolution committee and set a date for the hearing,” he added.
Pakistan has rejected England's claim, saying Australian umpire Darrell Hair triggered the incident by making unsubstantiated ball-tampering charges.
“He later also refused to resume the match despite intervention from the ICC and an agreement between both boards to play on the final day,” Saleem added.
The PCB believes Darrell Hair and fellow umpire Billy Doctrove were responsible for the premature end of the match and therefore the International Cricket Council, as their employers, should pay the ECB's costs.
Spectators who attended the fourth day's play were given a 40% refund by the ECB and those who had tickets for the fifth day received a full refund.
Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq was cleared of the ball-tampering charges at an ICC meeting in London last month but handed a four-match One-day International ban for bringing the game into disrepute.—Agencies
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