KARACHI: The upcoming tour to India by the Pakistan women’s cricket team, which is officially scheduled for November as a part of the ICC Women’s Championship, looks increasingly likely to be called off. Reason: The Board of Control for Cricket in India is yet to receive any directive from the government with regards to hosting the series.
As a part of the championship, Indian women’s team are supposed to host their Pakistani counterparts in a three-match ODI series.
“We are still waiting for an answer as the Indian board has to host the women’s series by November this year. It appears as if this series could also end up being cancelled as it doesn’t appear India is willing to host the Pakistan women’s team,” PTI quotes a Pakistan Cricket Board official as stating.
However, BCCI, on its part, has laid the ball at the door of the Union government.
“We can only take the matter forward once we hear from the government. We all know, a bilateral series against Pakistan is an issue that cannot be unilaterally managed by BCCI. It will follow instructions from the government,” a senior BCCI official told PTI off record.
PCB sources informed the newswire that the ICC had told them to “wait and watch” as the window to host Pakistan women’s team was between July and November.
In case India doesn’t host the Pakistan women’s team (as looks increasingly likely), the PCB wants ICC to award them points for the series.
On a related note, it bears pointing out that a couple of years ago, the BCCI refused to send its women team to Pakistan citing security concerns. However the Indian cricket board’s refusal to let the women’s team play Pakistan even at a neutral venue led to them being docked points by the ICC.
