It is a perfect storm in the making. For starters, the new revenue distribution model for international cricket has sparked a vociferous protest from Pakistan Cricket Board. Amid heated speculations about the boycott of the World Cup, Chairman Najam Sethi’s waving of the green flag with regard to the neutral avenues for hosting the Pak-India series has managed to ruffle feathers all around. While his predecessor Ramiz Raja has questioned his “cricketing knowledge,” former cricketer Salman Butt smirked, why not make it into a Euro-Asia Cup?
That politics have long tainted the gentleman’s game is no secret. Ever since the Big Three surprised the world with attempts to take the bigger slice of the revenue pie a decade ago, India’s Board of Cricket Control has employed every trick in the playbook to pull one over its rivals. Mainstream agendas continue to hold all the cards even today, as India has unveiled plans to slot a game with Pakistan at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. Comparatively safer avenues like Chennai or Kolkata could be chosen were India too interested in separating sports from politics and foreign policy (as asserted by Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutt-Zardari). There’s no denying the hawkish tendencies as no one from the Asian Cricket Council has as of yet responded to the looming threat.
Whether they wish to push a leading cricketing team to a corner or force it to bow down to their whims, the International Cricket Council needs to sort out its priorities. How is Pakistan expected to harness new talent and develop a formidable team with less than six per cent of the projected earnings of US $600 million? A lot of that has to do with the fact that the successes of eight seasons of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) are still not enough to trickle down to the treasury. Still, letting senseless proclivities hold a sport hostage that has previously excelled as a diplomatic tool between rivals would be patently erroneous. *