BCCI invites Pakistan to play in India in December

BCCI invites Pakistan to play in India in December: Amidst all the rumours and controversies, Pakistan has been offered to play India in a ‘home’ series in December. The news revives some old rivalries and is a great move considering the recent happenings.

In a press conference conducted by Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Shahryar Khan earlier today broke this news. This proposal was given to him by his counterpart from India, the BCCI chairman Shashank Manohar during a phone call on Friday.

“Shashank Manohar called me up on Friday evening and told me they have got clearance from their government to play against us. But he said they wanted to play the series in India and not in the UAE,” Shahryar said.

He further added,”Manohar also said that the Indian board would provide the best security to our team and schedule the matches in places like Mohali and Kolkata where there is no problem at playing a Indo-Pak match. In addition, the Indian board would devise a formula to ensure that we don’t suffer any loss of revenues for playing our home series in India”.

Apparently, according to the MOU signed with the BCCI, the PCB were to hold the series in UAE as India had hosted the last two series there. Regarding this, Sharyar said,”Why should we play our home series in India and not in UAE according to the MOU and there is the matter of security for our team, plus the nearly USD 50 million that we expect to earn from hosting the series. We have played our last two series in India and I think it is time we now got to host the series.”

He also raised issues about his player’s security given the anti-Pakistan sentiments in India but is hopeful that the issues can be resolved via talks. He also said that he would consult the board of governors when they meet on 17 November.

As a parting statement, he said,”But more importantly I have to first also seek clearance from the prime minister for any decision we take. At the moment I have told the Indian cricket chief to send us a detailed proposal in writing.”

However,  the chairman of PCB’s executive committee Najam Sethi told the media that he would advise the board not to accept any offer from BCCI to play the series in India. He was the chairman of the board when the PCB and BCCI signed a MOU last year under which the two countries will play six series against each other between 2015 and 2023 with Pakistan hosting the first series in December this year in UAE.

“In my personal opinion we should not go to India as it is our home series and the BCCI should honor the MOU they signed with us which states Pakistan will host this series,” Sethi said.

Regardless of wherever the series happens, it is an interesting prospect as the fans from both the countries are eager to watch the most coveted rivalry of the game which brings out the best from both the sides and looks a mouth-watering prospect if indeed it happens.