Reports: BCCI considered giving overseas players a choice between IPL and PSL

If the Pulwama terror attack has further deteriorated the bilateral ties between India and Pakistan, then it looks like the relations between the arch-rivals is only going to head south. There has been a widespread outrage against Pakistan in the entire nation since the attack, carried out by Pakistan-based militant group Jaish-E-Mohammad claimed the lives of 44 CRPF personnel. And the attack has impacted the cricketing ties too.

The general public has asked for the boycott of Pakistan in the upcoming World Cup and the BCCI is doing all it can to make Pakistan pay the price for the ghastly attack. The BCCI has already written to the ICC, asking the “cricketing community to sever ties with countries from which terrorism emanates”. BCCI CEO Rahul Johri also wrote to ICC chief executive Dave Richardson and chairman Shashank Manohar to bring the Pulwama incident to ICC’s notice, and reiterated that the attack was carried out by an “outfit based in Pakistan”.

Well, in the latest turn of events, reports suggest that the BCCI was contemplating the idea of giving foreign players a choice between Indian Premier League and the Pakistan Premier League. However, the idea was later dropped after a lot of deliberation.

As per a report in Indian Express, the BCCI was planning to isolate Pakistan by asking the overseas players to pick one between the two leagues. The members of the Committee of Administrators (CoA) — Vinod Rai, Diana Edulji and Lieutenant General Ravi Thodge along with BCCI CEO Rahul Johri conducted a meeting on Monday where the matter was discussed. But the officials decided that it would be inappropriate to ask the foreign players to choose between IPL and PSL as it was the IPL franchises and not the BCCI who buy the players and acquire their services for the league.

Several big names from IPL like Dwayne Bravo, Sunil Narine, Andre Russell, and AB de Villiers are currently playing in the Pakistan Super League.

No discussion on severing ties with Pakistan in ICC meeting

Meanwhile, the ICC will clear BCCI’s apprehensions over the security concerns at the upcoming World Cup but is unlikely to even discuss a possible boycott of Pakistan. The quarterly meeting of the ICC will start in Dubai on Wednesday with the Chief Executives (CEC) meeting where Rahul Johri’s letter will be discussed.

“The ICC is in no position to ask any cricket board to sever ties with another member nation. It doesn’t have right to do so. This is a diplomatic issue which is dealt with at the government level,” a source was quoted by Hindustan Times.

Get the latest Cricket News and updates from India vs Australia series, Match Predictions, Fantasy Cricket Tips and lots more on CricTracker.com.