Pakistan dissatisfied with security, wants match shifted from Dharamsala

Barely a few hours after stating that the India-Pakistan match would go on as planned, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) made a U-turn, saying that they would like a change of venue. The move comes after a report came in from a 3 man delegation who had made the trip across the border to inspect the security provisions for the players. ESPNcricinfo has reported that the report was handed to the PCB as well as Pakistan interior minister Chaudary Nisar, after which it was decided that the Pakistan team would not travel to India on Wednesday as scheduled.

The PCB had earlier written to Dave Richardson, the CEO of the ICC in a bid to move the match to a venue alternative to Dharamsala. The letter had stated that the security threat to their players meant that they ‘were not keen’ on playing there. It is understood to have proposed Kolkata or Mohali as a replacement for Dharamsala.

An undisclosed representative of the BCCI however, said that the PCB had indeed intimated the Indian board their unwillingness to play at the Venue. However, they appeared confident the match could still be moved to an alternate venue.

“They have not conveyed it (not playing in Dharamsala) to ICC as a decision, but as a suggestion,” the official told ESPNcricnfo. According to him the two back-up venues could be Bangalore and Kolkata. “Mohali is already hosting two (Pakistan) matches. Kolkata already has one match. Delhi, we all know the issues there (the Delhi & District Cricket Association struggling to get various clearances to host matches).”

The BCCI official also said that the ICC would make the ‘final’ call on the marquee fixture by Wednesday (9th of March), given the schedule for the Pakistani cricket team’s warm-up matches.

The three-man delegation headed by FIA director Usman Anwar were reportedly not convinced about the security detail and protocols in place for the match. PCB security and anti-corruption head Azam Khan, and Pakistan’s Deputy High Commissioner joined Anwar as part of the delegation. It is believed that most of the Indian officials they were coordinating with were relatively junior in rank.

The Pakistan Government had previously granted the PCB permission to allow the Pakistan team to take active part in the World T20. This controversy had been inadvertently been sparked off by the comments made by Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Vidharba Singh.