"BCCI should have taken my advice, they are now in a mess with schedule tweaks " - Najam Sethi on playing Pakistan's matches at a neutral venue
Former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Najam Sethi took a jibe at the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for the mismanagement of the ICC World Cup 2023 schedule.
The Indian cricket board’s planning for the marquee event came under scrutiny after the Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) requested them to further tweak the already revised schedule. The HCA expressed concerns over hosting back-to-back matches under the revised itinerary of the World Cup.
The Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Uppal is scheduled to host New Zealand vs Netherlands on October 9 and Pakistan vs Sri Lanka on October 10. The latter fixture was initially planned on October 12 but was later moved a couple of days earlier as one of the nine changes in the amended schedule.
Speaking about the World Cup schedule rejig, Sethi, who was the interim PCB chairman for six months until June 21, said the BCCI ignored his proposal to conduct Pakistan’s matches at a neutral venue.
The 75-year-old posted on social media:
“@BCCI should have taken my advice re @TheRealPCB playing their WC games in a neutral country :) They are now in a mess with schedule tweaks being proposed every few days!”
Pakistan’s three games were moved from the original World Cup 2023 schedule because of the lack of police security in cities like Ahmedabad and Kolkata owing to the festival season.
Pakistan to begin 2023 World Cup campaign on October 6
Pakistan will start their 2023 World Cup campaign with a match against the Netherlands, one of the two teams to qualify for the prestigious tournament, on October 6 in Uppal. The Babar Azam-led side will next play against Sri Lanka on October 10, a fixture that might be changed.
Pakistan will face arch-rivals India in the high-voltage clash on October 14 in Ahmedabad, the match was first scheduled on October 15. Pakistan’s other rescheduled match has been against England. It will be played on November 11 instead of November 12 because of Durga Puja celebrations in Kolkata.
The Pakistan-England fixture will also be the last fixture of the round-robin phase for both teams.