PCB in talks with UAE to jointly host ICC events

Karachi: The Pakistan Cricket Board is trying to collaborate with its counterpart in the UAE and launch joint bids to host five to six ICC events, PCB chairman Ehsan Mani has revealed.

The PCB is going to bid for events in the cycle that runs from 2023 to 2031, hoping to win at least one or two of those.

“We had expressed an interest to host five to six events and, frankly, it is likely we won’t be getting more than one or two. But we also thought out of the box to bid jointly with another country,” Mani said in a PCB podcast.

“I have already begun speaking with the Emirates Cricket Board for a team-up to increase the chances of hosting some of it together but, again, it needs cooperation. “There are a few events with 16 games and then there are events with 30-40 games, so depending on the scale, the workload can be divided between us,” he added.

The International Cricket Council had invited expressions of interest from its Member nations until March 15 for 20 global events that will be held in the 2023-2031 cycle but the meetings have been deferred indefinitely due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“It is very important for Pakistan cricket and its development that some of the ICC events are played in Pakistan,” Mani said.

“We intend to make a very serious expression of our interest on this matter and we will be getting full government support as well.”

Since becoming an affiliated member of the ICC in 1952, Pakistan have hosted two global cricket events: the 1987 and 1996 World Cups.

They were supposed to co-host the 2011 World Cup but lost the rights as teams refused to tour the country citing security concerns in the wake of the terrorist attack on the Sri Lankan team bus in Lahore in 2009.

India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh eventually co-hosted the 2011 World Cup.