Former ICC official Sami ul Hasan Burney has raised sharp questions about the functioning of the BCCI. He believes that if the BCCI had not ordered the release of Bangladeshi fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman and had resolved the matter quietly, the current controversy surrounding Pakistan's potential boycott of matches against India before the 2026 T20 World Cup would not have arisen.
Former official slams ICC, questions BCCI's actions
Sami ul Hasan Burney, who later served as the media director of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), said that unnecessary public communication exacerbated the situation.
Burney told news agency PTI that the situation could have been easily avoided if cricket administrators had been more cautious and refrained from making public statements suggesting the removal of a Bangladeshi player from a franchise.
He further added that sometimes we make wrong decisions and say things that have a huge impact. The announcement made on January 3rd was also a result of such a mistake.
It is worth noting that Usman Burney was previously a journalist at the 'Dawn' newspaper. He then worked at the ICC headquarters in Dubai for over 10 years. Until last year, he was also the media director of the PCB. During this time, he also shared some insights into the working style of PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi.
According to Burney, Naqvi believes that the ICC's decision not to shift Bangladesh's matches against India to Sri Lanka is wrong. This is completely contrary to the ICC's previous decisions and lacks consistency.
‘ICC is speaking with a double standard.’
Naqvi argues that the ICC is speaking with a double standard. When it was India's turn, the rules were different, and when it came to Bangladesh, the rules were changed. This is what Burney is calling a 'double standard,' where the rules appear to be different for larger countries and different for others. The ICC has indicated that Pakistan could face financial penalties and revenue losses amounting to millions of dollars for its decision. However, Bernie said that Pakistan would have considered the consequences before making its decision.
He said these are not easy decisions. Legal and expert advice would have been sought. Bernie further added that, considering all the implications, canceling even a single match against India could result in losses of up to US$250 million. Pakistan's annual revenue is approximately US$35.5 million, so the difference is quite significant.
The former ICC official also stated that Pakistan has survived economic hardship and the absence of home cricket matches from 2009 to 2019. During this period, by winning the 2009 T20 World Cup and the 2017 Champions Trophy, Pakistan proved that it can handle pressure.
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