Pakistan may be the most unsafe place on earth to play cricket today, but it’s most passionate country when it comes to watching the game. And, so when Zimbabwe decided to tour Pakistan by leaving behind the 2009 terrorist attack on the Sri Lanka cricket team episode near the Gaddafi stadium in Lahore, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) was on cloud nine. They are now hoping against hope to host big Test playing nations in future.
With the International Cricket Council (ICC) not showing enough encouragement in favour of the international teams touring Pakistan, PCB’s biggest deal will be to bring back cricket into the hostile state. Besides sorting out their money related problems, Pakistan desperately need assurances from the Indian cricket board (BCCI) on the proposed India-Pakistan series to keep their finances in good shape.
If PCB is able to win BCCI’s trust on the proposed series which is either scheduled to be played in India or in the UAE, it will give lots of credibility to PCB. It can lead to Bangladesh touring Pakistan. Earlier, attempts were made to rope in Bangladesh to play Pakistan, but those efforts went in vain, as the threat perception surrounding Pakistan has always ruled the roost.
Hence the question: Is India-Pakistan series really happening at the end of this year? From the government side of it, India are fully cooperating to make this series a reality. However, there are a few issues, which both BCCI and PCB are hoping to resolve through dialogues.
Simultaneously, PCB is extremely hopeful and wants a repeat the 2004 show be it in the UAE or India. Like ever before, PCB wants the proposed India-Pakistan series to create the maximum buzz in the sub-continent.
To make this one a memorable event, PCB will not mind Shah Rukh Khan comes out with ‘Mein Hoon Na Returns’, the Bollywood version of India-Pakistan’s bhai-bhai relations.
PCB also wants it to the biggest festival like it happened during the 2004 series, wherein the Indian fans connected with their Pakistani counterparts without any fear. Perhaps now, PCB needs a few more round of meetings with BCCI to determine the fate of this series!
