Pakistan Cricket Board Chairman Ramiz Raja has once again threatened to boycott ODI World Cup 2023 slated to be held in India if Pakistan are denied the opportunity to host Asia Cup. However, Ramiz did mention that he would want both countries to host each other again.
Tensions between the two cricket boards started in October after Indian Cricket Board secretary Jay Shah revealed that Team India won’t be travelling to Pakistan and called for a change in venue to a neutral host. In reply, PCB threatened to pull out of the ODI World Cup which would be held within a month after the Asia Cup next year.
“We don’t want to really go there but it’s just that the fans want us to react,” Raja told Sky Sports Cricket on Saturday. “The fans are absolutely bitter because of what India’s narrative has been regarding India-Pakistan.”
In further conversation with former England cricketer Michael Atherton, Raja slammed Indian Cricket Board’s stance as “unfair” and said that the PCB would resist a change in venue for the Asia Cup.
“I think there’s a government policy and I’ve got no idea whether they’ll come or not,” he said. “The Asia Cup would mean a great deal to the fans, it’s a multi-nation tournament. We will resist.”
The former Pakistan cricketer further said that he loves fans from both countries and he would want India and Pakistan to resume their cricket rivalry and host each other for bilateral series but only on “equal terms”.
We’ve survived without India:Ramiz Raja
“I’m all for India-Pakistan contests, I’ve said this on record,” he stated. “I absolutely love the fans, and they like us as well – Pakistan has become a brand in international cricket, the players have got fan following in India, and I know that the second most watched team in India after India is Pakistan, so they take interest in our development,” said the 1992 World Cup winner.
“We want to go and play, but the fact is it has to be on equal terms. You can’t be subservient to a certain cricket board. We’ve survived without India now for a good number of years. Pakistan have looked at the scales of economy in-house and somehow have survived extremely well,” Ramiz added.
