LAHORE: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Shaharyar Khan on Friday said that Pakistan played an important role in eliminating Big Three from the structure of the International Cricket Council (ICC).

“Big Three was an undemocratic set-up and Pakistan was the only country which raised its voice against this set-up from the very beginning and made the cricket-playing countries realise that Big Three was not going to truly serve world cricket [with equality] because it was favouring certain member countries of the ICC which was an injustice,” Shaharyar said while talking to reporters.

He was addressing a news conference at the National Cricket Academy after returning from Dubai where he attended the ICC meeting along with PCB executive committee chairman Najam Sethi.

“We [the PCB] were at loss due to the creation of Big Three in the ICC and with its abolition, Pakistan will get the [monetary] benefit of $39 million,” the PCB chief stated.

“We due to Big Three set-up suffered in many ways. For example, we were scheduled to play six [bilateral] series with India; but they backed out of the commitment due to which we suffered huge financial losses,” he added.

“With the abolition of Big Three, now the ICC will be more professional and democratic as its member countries will get equal financial benefits and representation in the Council,” said the PCB chairman.

Answering a question, Shaharyar said the Big Three set-up was adversely affecting world cricket, adding that several promises were made to Pakistan but not fulfilled which caused huge financial losses to the PCB.

“Now with the elimination of Big three from world cricket, we hope that a new era will begin in the ICC, and in Pakistan cricket,” said Shaharyar.

Commenting on the proposed visit of an International XI team to Pakistan in September this year, the PCB chief said that the matches would be staged in Lahore, not Karachi.

“Most of the things relating to the [planned] tour of International XI have been finalised; only players’ selection is to be carried out. And it is not possible to hold their matches in Karachi as during the PSL final [held on March this year] security arrangements were made and reviewed at Lahore,” Shaharyar said.

Published in Dawn, April 29th, 2017