BCCI to request ICC to ban Pakistan from 2019 World Cup

Speculations continue to mount over whether India would play Pakistan in the upcoming ICC World Cup after the Pulwama attack.  In the aftermath of the dastardly attack, the bilateral ties between the two countries has deteriorated it further. Over 40 Indian paramilitary troops were martyred on last Thursday when an explosive-laden SUV rammed into the CRPF convoy in Pulwama. Pakistan-based militant group Jaish-e-Mohammad took responsibility for the attack.

Unsurprisingly, there has been a widespread call to boycott Pakistan from every possible sector and the cricketing fraternity has not remained far behind. The majority in India now wants the Men in Blue to boycott Pakistan in the upcoming World Cup and it has been endorsed by some big names from cricket too like Harbhajan Singh, IPL chairman Rajeev Shukla and others. Well, the saga has now taken a new turn.

Latest media reports suggest that India is now eyeing a Pakistan-less World Cup. According to the Times of India, the Committee of Administrators (CoA) Chairman Vinod Rai has asked BCCI CEO Rahul Johri to write a letter to the ICC requesting a ban on Pakistan from the World Cup for harbouring terrorists. It has also been also been understood that India may consider withdrawing themselves if Pakistan isn’t banned.

The report further claimed that Rai has also told Johri to make ICC aware of the current ‘mood’ in India after the recent terror attack. The picture is likely to become clear during ICC’s quarterly meetings that will take place in Dubai next week.

ICC on the issue

While the matter is now taking a serious form, ICC CEO David Richardson has said that the governing body is yet to hear anything on it from the BCCI or the PCB. He further said that the ICC would continue to monitor the situation before taking a final call.

“We haven’t written to the boards as yet,” Richardson told ESPNcricinfo. “Our thoughts are with the people that were impacted by the incident. And we are monitoring the situation with our members including the BCCI and PCB. Certainly there are no indications any of the matches, including the Pakistan-India match, will not be played as planned at the World Cup. But as I say we will continue to monitor the situation,” he further added.

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