Days after BCCI secretary Jay Shah played down his proposal for a 4-nation annual tournament, Pakistan Cricket Board chief Ramiz Raja on Tuesday said he would approach BCCI president Sourav Ganguly to discuss his proposal for a 4-nation annual tournament, including India and Pakistan.
Ramiz Raja, earlier this year, had said he would propose the 4-national tournament to the ICC, adding that the profits from such a tournament can be shared on a percentage basis with all ICC members. Raja said the tournament will have India, Pakistan, Australia and England with the host nation taking turns every year.
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However, BCCI secretary Jay Shah had played down Raja’s proposal last month, adding that the expansion of sport is more important than short-term commercial interests.
“I will talk to Sourav Ganguly about it when we meet for the ACC meeting in Dubai. Both of us are former captains and players and for us cricket is not about politics,” Raja said, as quoted by the PTI.
“I think it’s unfair to keep fans away from India-Pakistan contests,” he added.
“Even if India does not go with us on this proposal, we will think about launching an annual three-nation event with Australia and England in Pakistan.”
The PCB chief added that the tri-nation and quadrangular series are the way forward to maintain the context of international cricket amid the growing popularity of franchise-based leagues.
“The future of cricket is in triangular and four-nation competitions. Twenty20 leagues are taking away eyeballs from bilateral cricket, of which the novelty factor is decreasing.”
Notably, India and Pakistan have not been playing bilateral cricket since 2012-13 season due to strain in ties between the two neighbouring countries. However, their matches in ICC tournaments have been generating a lot of buzz, proving to be the marque event in any major tournament. India defeated Pakistan in the group stages of the 2019 World Cup but lost to the arch-rivals in the T20 World Cup last year.
India and Pakistan are scheduled to meet in the upcoming T20 World Cup at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on October 23.
