Former PCB Chairman Ramiz Raja suggested that he has to take a stand against India as it was after a long time when Pakistan was awarded the hosting rights for a major tournament. However, out of nowhere the BCCI refused to travel to the country. Due to the political tensions between the two countries, the Indian team has not travelled to Pakistan since 2008 when the Men in Blue participated in the Asia Cup, while Pakistan’s last visit to India was for the 2016 ICC T20 World Cup.
Things got heated between the two cricket boards after BCCI secretary Jay Shah said that Team India won’t be travelling to Pakistan and called for a change in venue to a neutral host. Raja also made some explosive comments after Shah’s statements and said that Pakistan will also boycott the next ODI World Cup if India decided to not play Asia Cup in Pakistan.
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Raja said that the game of cricket is to break the barrier but also suggested that, as the head of the cricket board one has to take some tough calls.
“I have great regard for Indian fans and have absolutely enjoyed my stints in India. Cricket is meant to break barriers and transcend boundaries. The problem comes when you are leading a country or a cricket board. You need to make certain tough decisions. In India, people see these decisions from a different perspective, while in Pakistan, we look at our own benefits,” Raja said on his YouTube channel.
The former PCB chairman shed light on the tussle between the two cricketing boards in recent times and said that he has to take a stand for PCB because they were awarded hosting rights for a major multi-nation tournament after a long time which is going to make things better for the board.
“It all started when India decided not to tour Pakistan for the Asia Cup and were against conducting the tournament here. We all know that there has been a famine in cricket in Pakistan, given that the big teams weren’t keen to travel here for tours. We got a major tournament after a very long wait, and that is why we had to take a stand,” he said.
Raja emphasised on the PCB hosting the likes of England and New Zealand in recent times and said that the BCCI’s decision of refusing to come to Pakistan without any conversation was not right.
“Leadership is very important when you are running cricket. England refused to come to Pakistan, but they came when we challenged them. The same goes for New Zealand. Both teams agreed to play extra matches. We had to take a stand because something unfair was happening. Not letting the Asia Cup take place in Pakistan, that too without any conversation, or any committee, was not right. No other member of the Asia Cup had any idea about it. When you try to boss any country, it hurts. So in India, they would paint this situation differently. They would think, ‘How can Pakistan challenge us? They don’t have any existence,” he added.
“That is why I would always tell Babar Azam that it was very important for us to win against India. India are not going to regard us as a superpower in cricket unless there is competition,” he said.
Raja further talked about Pakistan’s close defeat to India in the 2022 T20 World Cup and said that Babar Azam and Co. over-analysed things under pressure and lost the game.
“It’s good for the headlines in India, Virat Kohli played an outstanding inning, a world-class knock under pressure. He played some very good shots. After that, I chatted with the team and told them we over-analysed the things in that match. We had to defend 14-16 runs in the final over. It was a matter of four fours or three sixes in six balls then you just have to salute them for what they achieve. The analysis turned into paralysis, our players came under pressure which was the reason we lost the match,” he added.
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