LAHORE: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Shaharyar Khan admitted on Wednesday that Indian cricket authorities violated the ethics of hospitality but said he still hasn’t closed the doors on resumption of bilateral series between the two rivals.

Addressing a hurriedly-called news conference at the Gaddafi Stadium after arriving from India, Shaharayar said he was dismayed that the Board of Control of Cricket in India (BCCI) hadn’t done its job well to host the PCB delegation.

He added that the PCB will wait for a final reply from the BCCI on the series, scheduled for December in the UAE, before taking a decision on boycotting the World T20 in India next year.

Shaharyar and fellow PCB officials Najam Sethi and Subhan Ahmad went to India on Sunday for talks with the BCCI on the bilateral series. However, hours before the two boards were set to meet at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, a group of activists from Indian hard-line party Shiv Sena protested at the BCCI headquarters, forcing the meeting to be cancelled.

“We were in our hotel and ready to leave for the meeting when received a call from the BCCI about the protest and they asked us to wait for a while,” Shaharyar said. “We were feeling that the meeting would be rescheduled but it was cancelled. We then waited all day for a reply from the BCCI before deciding to leave Mumbai.

PCB chief says no decision yet on World T20 participation

“While Sethi and Subhan went to Dubai, I went to New Delhi hoping that the BCCI will call me but BCCI chief Shashank Manohar didn’t even give me a courtesy call to apologise for the situation,” added the seasoned diplomat.

Shaharyar said that the PCB “would wait for a reply from the BCCI in the next ten days” but rejected the impression that the PCB was begging them for the series.

“We just want a final reply from the BCCI whether or not they are ready for the series since they signed an MoU with us,” he said.

To a question, Shaharyar admitted that MoU had no clause which forced India to face a penalty in case of refusal. “Such conditions can only be included in a contract,” he said, admitting it would’ve been better if a contract for the series had been signed.

The PCB chief denied that he had assured India that Pakistan would send its team for the World T20. “A final decision in this regard will only be taken after receiving a final reply from the BCCI for the bilateral series,” he said. “We would also write a letter to the BCCI expressing our disappointment over their poor hospitality.”

Shaharyar said that it was only on Manohar’s insistence that he went to Mumbai. “I was ready to go to Nagpur or Delhi but Manohar asked me to come to Mumbai,” he informed. “If they call us for a meeting in a neutral territory, the PCB will table some conditions before accepting the invitation.

“The majority of Indians and Pakistanis want to play a bilateral series but a small group of extremists [Shiv Sena] is making the situation difficult and unfortunately they have the support of the [Indian] government.”

Shaharyar lamented the entire situation, adding that sending back Pakistan umpire Aleem Dar along with former cricketers and now commentators Wasim Akram and Shoaib Akhtar wouldn’t “serve anything positive”.

He rejected the impression that the PCB went to India uninvited, distributing a copy of the letter issued by BCCI General Manager Game Development Prof. R.S Shetty. Although the letter was not addressed to the PCB chairman or anyone else, it was just fulfilling a requirement to get Indian visa for Mumbai.

“Manohar invited me verbally first and then sent the letter,” Shaharyar added.

The PCB chief also rejected the impression that the BCCI was involved in the farcical protest before adding that the hosts could’ve avoided the demonstration since the number of the protesters were hardly 40 in number. “However, the BCCI might not have been expecting such a protest,” he said.

With India announcing to hold the Asia Cup T20 from Feb 26, two days after the end of the inaugural Pakistan Super League (PSL) in the UAE, Shaharyar said he didn’t expect a negative impact on the lucrative event from a financial aspect.

He said that although the PCB would suffer some losses if the series with India doesn’t go ahead, the Board was still “in a position to bear them.”

“India hasn’t been playing with us for the last eight years but we’re living and playing our cricket,” he said. “If they were to play us, that would obviously be a bonus.”

Shaharyar said that since he was chairman of an independent PCB, it wasn’t compulsory for him to seek government permission to travel to India. “Recently, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had expressed the will that the cricket series should be held between the two countries so my visit to India wasn’t a violation of the government policy,” he said.

Shaharayr concluded saying that the ICC’s takeover by the ‘Big Three’ of India, Australia and England was being criticised by other cricket boards, cricketers and media as it wasn’t “serving any positive purpose”.

Published in Dawn, October 22nd, 2015

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