CricDigs Blogs

As if the ongoing international seclusion that Pakistan cricket is suffering wasn’t enough, now another set of controversies has cropped up to dampen the efforts of the PCB. The players who had participated in the ICL under the banner of Lahore Badshahs are now asking to be allowed to turn up for their respective domestic sides and, in all probability, the PCB might not be able to stop this from happening. This would certainly be disliked by the ICC bosses.

The ICL hasn’t turned out to be the financial bonanza that the defected Pakistani players were hoping it to be. In fact, most of them have started making a noise about their long-standing dues and non-payment of individual participation fees. They have been further enraged by the PCB for not letting them easy access to being shipped across as ‘overseas’ players in the counties and most of them playing in England aren’t being paid at par with regular international players.

The small bunch of players who had managed to gain entry into the IPL’s 1st edition would miss out the 2nd edition in all probability. Further, chances are that the amount promised to them taking into consideration the promotion of the League over a period of time would also be compromised. Now, there are reports that Mohammad Asif has been held guilty for opium possession. The PCB had outrightly rejected any theory that claimed Asif’s guilt when the matter was first reported but now it looks as if the Board would have to come up with a real innovative explanation to protect a potential match-winner for the team.

His current participation from domestic and international cricket was already under temporary suspension and he could end up getting banished from the game. To top it all, there are reports that some political parties in India are asking for a total boycott of playing with Pakistan not just in bilateral series but even in international tournaments. Wonder what would happen if the ICC is faced with such a conundrum.