Ramiz Raja Tells ICC Authorities No Decision Been Made To Boycott The World Cup In India

A new update on Pakistan’s position about a boycott of the ODI Cup, which will be hosted in India next year, has surfaced as the discussions slow down while both India and Pakistan are playing their respective series.

The former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Ramiz Raja, according to a report in PTI, has informed ICC authorities that it threatened to boycott the ODI World Cup in order to persuade India to send a squad for the Asia Cup, which is slated to be hosted in Pakistan next year. A source familiar with the development was referenced in the paper. 

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PCB Tried To Exert Pressure To Get The Indian Board To Send It’s Team For Asia Cup:  Ramiz Raja

It went on to say that PCB chairman Ramiz Raja assured the authorities that no decision had been taken on Pakistan’s World Cup boycott. During the home Test series against England, which the hosts lost 0-3, a few ICC officials, including CEO Geoff Allardice, had flown to Pakistan. 

“Ramiz assured the ICC officials that PCB had made no decision on not sending its team to India for the World Cup nor was it in favour of boycotting such a mega event but because of the strained cricket relations between the two countries, the PCB had to exert pressure to get the Indian board to send its team for Asia Cup,” the source was quoted by PTI as saying.

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PCB Still Committed To Organize Champions Trophy In 2025

Another important detail from the article was that Ramiz Raja informed the officials that the board is still committed to organising the 2025 Champions Trophy whether or not India sends athletes. 

“Ramiz was very clear that Pakistan will not be receptive to the tournament being moved anywhere else because of India as it had already started heavy investment on building or renovating infrastructure for the ICC event,” the source said. 

“Ramiz reminded the ICC officials that the executive board which included India had given hosting rights of the Champions Trophy to Pakistan, so there should be no confusion as to where the tournament will be held on schedule.” 

After ACC president and BCCI secretary Jay Shah indicated that India wouldn’t be sending a team to Pakistan for the Asia Cup, and as a result, Pakistan threatened to withdraw out of the World Cup, tensions between the two boards grew in October. 

It will be India’s first trip to the neighbouring nation in 13 years if they travel. The previous time the squad travelled to Pakistan was for the 2008 Asia Cup, and following the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, the two-match series nearly came to an end. 

In 2012, Pakistan visited India for a bilateral series for the first time since the bombings. Since then, the two sides have only faced off in ICC and ACC competitions. 

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