ICC right to warn Pakistan for boycotting India clash: Rajeev Shukla
Pakistan's decision is being seen as a political protest linked to Bangladesh's removal from the tournament.
PTI
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The India-Pakistan clash is the most anticipated fixture of any ICC event (PTI)
New Delhi, 2 Feb
BCCI vice-president Rajeev Shukla on Monday said the the
International Cricket Council (ICC) was right in warning Pakistan of severe
repercussions for its selective pullout from the high-profile T20 World Cup
contest against India in Colombo on 15 February.
Pakistan's decision, conveyed through an official government
statement, is being seen as a political protest linked to Bangladesh's removalfrom the tournament after the world body declined its request to shift matches
from India to Sri Lanka on security grounds.
The ICC has already warned Pakistan Cricket Board thet a
boycott of the marquee fixture could lead to punitive sanctions and said that
the decision is not in the interest of the game in general.
"The ICC has issued a big statement on this subject. It
has highlighted element of sportsmanship. We completely agree with the ICC.
BCCI will not make any comment until we speak to the ICC," Shukla told
reporters here.
The raging controversy was sparked by Bangladesh pacer's
Mustafizur Rahman's ouster from the IPL on instructions of the BCCI for
unspecified reasons. Bangladesh refused to travel to India after that citing
security concerns.
Congress Member of Parliament Shashi Tharoor said the game
can't be held to ransom like the way it is being at the moment.
"It is pretty disgraceful that sport has been
politicised in this way on both sides, frankly. I don't think that Mustafizur
(Bangladeshi cricketer Mustafizur Rahman) should have been denied his contract
to play in Kolkata. It was most unfortunate intrusion of politics,"
Tharoor told reporters.
"I think the Bangladeshi reaction was an overreaction
but it is also a reflection of the same and Pakistan is trying to show its
solidarity with Bangladesh. This whole thing is spiralling out of control.
"I honestly think this is now a wake-up call for all
concerned to contact each other on an emergency basis, the ICC could be the
platform for it - just say, let's call off this nonsense...You can't go on like
this forever," he said.
The India-Pakistan clash is the most anticipated fixture of
any ICC event, drawing peak global viewership, sponsorship interest and
broadcast revenues.
The host broadcaster could incur advertisement revenue
losses which could be anything in the range of Rs 200 crore to Rs 250 crore for
a marquee game whose 10 second commercial slot can cost up to Rs 40 lakh.
While a walkover would hand full points to India, the ICC retains
the authority to impose financial penalties on the PCB.
To get a walkover, the opposition team needs to be present
on the ground for the coin toss.
The Indian team will therefore travel to Sri Lanka and
Suryakumar Yadav will be walking out for the toss. Once Pakistan skipper Salman
Ali Agha doesn't appear, the match referee will award a walkover and two points
to India.
There could also be a host of sanctions awaiting Pakistan,
including docking of WTC points, no movement in ICC rankings, top member
nations refusing to travel there and last but not the least -- sanctions on
participation of players in the Pakistan Super League (PSL).
Pakistan is scheduled to open their campaign against the
Netherlands on 7 February, followed by matches against USA on 10 February and
Namibia on 18 February. All their matches will be played at the SSC ground in
Colombo.
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