Daily Times

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) will continue to ‘host’ major tournaments in the United Arab Emirates, read a statement issued by the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) following a meeting with PCB officials on Tuesday. During the meeting, it was also agreed that the ECB would significantly reduce the costs of holding these tournaments for the PCB with immediate effect. Besides, the ECB will also host a T20 and T10 League from December 10, 2018, to January 10, 2019, when there are no PCB fixtures in the UAE, read the statement. It was also agreed that the ECB would not host any league during the time when the PCB fixtures are being played in the UAE.

The issue had surfaced following the announcement of Afghanistan cricket league, which was scheduled to be held in the month of October this year in Sharjah.

Also during October, Pakistan were scheduled to host Australia for a full series in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, the PCB had feared that Afghan league matches being staged in the same month would have hit the latter’s commercial interests. It earlier reported that while the PCB was not against the holding of the Afghan Premier League T20 event in the UAE, it was only concerned that the dates of the said league were clashing with its home series, which Pakistan had been organising in the UAE since 2010 due to security-related issues in the aftermath of the terror attack on Sri Lankan cricket team at Lahore in March 2009.

Published in Daily Times, June 27^th 2018.