'Baseless': Asian Cricket Council slams PCB Chairman’s social media comments

The Asian Cricket Council (ACC) on Friday slammed Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Najam Sethi over the comments made by him targeting Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary and Asian Cricket Council (ACC) president Jay Shah following the announcement of ACC Calendar 2023-24.

"Presenting the @ACCMedia1 pathway structure & cricket calendars for 2023 & 2024! This signals our unparalleled efforts & passion to take this game to new heights. With cricketers across countries gearing up for spectacular performances, it promises to be a good time for cricket," Jay Shah said in a tweet.

PCB's interim chairman Najam Sethi took a sarcastic jibe at Jay Shah for "unilaterally" presenting the structure and calendar of ACC.

Sethi tweeted on Thursday and said, "Thank you Jay Shah for unilaterally presenting ACC structure & calendars 2023-24 especially relating to Asia Cup 2023 for which Pakistan is the event host. While you are at it, you might as well present structure and calendar of our PSL 2023! A swift response will be appreciated."

Sethi's sarcasm-laden tweet was not lost on anyone and the Asian Cricket Council issued an official statement clarifying that the body had followed due process.

"The Asian Cricket Council (ACC) on Thursday announced the ACC Calendar 2023-24 and the pathway structure. It has come to our knowledge that PCB Chairman Najam Sethi has made a comment on the ACC President unilaterally taking the decision on finalising the calendar and announcing the same. The ACC wants to clarify that it has followed established due process. The calendar was approved by its Development Committee and Finance and Marketing Committee in a meeting held on December 13, 2022.

"The calendar was then communicated to all the participating members individually, including Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), via an email dated December 22, 2022. While responses were received from certain Member Boards, no comments or suggested modifications were received from PCB. In view of the above, Sethi's comments on a social media platform are baseless and are vehemently denied by the ACC," it further read.

Travelling to Pakistan

Pakistan is the original host of the Asia Cup this year but the BCCI is not keen on playing there owing to political tension between the two countries.

The then Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Ramiz Raja had opposed the BCCI's stand and even threatened to boycott the 50-over World Cup in India.

Raja's contention was that the decision to award Pakistan the hosting rights was taken by ACC's Board of Directors and Shah can't decide about shifting the tournament.

The Asia Cup 2023 will be a six-team affair involving India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and a qualifier team. Sri Lanka are the defending Asia Cup champions in the UAE after they beat Pakistan in the final. The tournament was played in T20 format because of the ICC T20 World Cup in Australia.

• Second Test ends in thrilling draw after Sarfaraz hundred