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Cricket Players‘Is your threat so overwhelming that ICC would agree?’ PCB grilled for inserting itself in Bangladesh T20 World Cup row
Former Pakistan batter Salman Butt weighed in on the Bangladesh T20 World Cup row and he questioned PCB for inserting itself into the mix.
Former Pakistan opening batter Salman Butt grilled the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and its chief, Mohsin Naqvi, for inserting itself into the T20 World Cup row involving the ICC and Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB). The 20-team tournament is less than 20 days away, but it's still unclear whether Bangladesh will participate. For three weeks, BCB have been adamant in their demand not to play in India. This stance was taken after the IPL franchise Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) released Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman from their squad owing to recent developments.
The relations between India and Bangladesh continue to get strained following the killings of multiple Hindus in Bangladesh. As tensions between the ICC and BCB rise, the PCB reportedly inserted itself into the mix, taking a stance of solidarity with Bangladesh. According to reports in Pakistani media, the PCB would reconsider its participation if Bangladesh is chucked out of the tournament. The reports also claim that the PCB chief Naqvi has put a stop to the team's preparations for the tournament.
According to ESPNCricinfo, the final decision on the entire row involving the ICC and the BCB is set to be announced on January 21. Bangladesh has to decide by Wednesday whether to travel to India. If BCB refuses, the team would be replaced by Scotland in Group C.
Also Read: Pakistan rule out T20 World Cup boycott in Bangladesh solidarity: 'PCB has no grounds to do so'
Amid the ongoing saga, Butt questioned the PCB for throwing its hat into the ring, asking pointed questions about whether the Pakistan board really thinks its threat is too overwhelming for the ICC.
“You just float things to test the waters and check what reactions are coming through. I don't know what will happen. Pakistan says it is standing with Bangladesh. What options are there, though? If Bangladesh don't play, will you also not play?” said Butt on his YouTube channel.
“Would you allow them the space, or do you think your (Pakistan) threat is so overwhelming that ICC would agree? At the end of the day, it is all about the decision maker and what he thinks,” he added.
‘Don’t know what will happen'
However, Butt also didn't spare the ICC, saying the apex body should shift Bangladesh's matches to Sri Lanka, as it had done earlier for other teams such as India and Pakistan.
“The same goes for the organiser of the World Cup. If you allowed this for one team, then how can you say 'play or we will get someone else on board'? Don't know what will happen. We shall see what will happen. There's no official word or denial,” said Butt.
On the other hand, he also didn't buy into the theory that preparation was stopped for the Pakistan team, as most of the T20 World Cup-bound players are representing franchises in the Big Bash League and the Bangladesh Premier League.
“We heard that preparations have been stopped, but only 2-4 boys were preparing for the tournament. So what preparation did you actually stop? I don't know whether it is a rumour, self-created, or floated just to check reactions. It can be used to measure temperature,” Butt concluded.
The Pakistani media might be reporting about the PCB's stance of standing in solidarity with Bangladesh, but a report in RevSportz claimed the contrary, saying Pakistan have no grounds to leave the T20 World Cup as they are already playing their matches in Sri Lanka as part of a pre-signed agreement.
