PCB insisting that ACC pays some share of the additional costs and pay the hosting fee for Asia Cup
Pakistan was the original host of the tournament last year, but with India unwilling to travel to due to geo-political tensions, the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) and the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) decided on a hybrid model and roped in Sri Lanka to host the majority of the matches.
This resulted in extra expenses being incurred on chartered flights, hotel bookings, venue hire fees, and travel, among others.
During the ACC AGM in Bali, SLC made it clear that it was not willing to take the financial burden as it did not earn extra and was also not the official host of the tournament. The expenses also increased as former PCB chief Zaka Ashraf changed the venue of the first match from Lahore to Multan.
On the other hand, the PCB is trying to get the ACC to pay for the additional expenses as the continental cricket governing body decided to take away Pakistan's hosting rights and split the event.
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ACC chief Jay Shah made it clear that it was the PCB that insisted on hosting four matches after the ACC board had decided to move the entire tournament to Sri Lanka.
"When the financial dispute was discussed by the acting chairman of the PCB, Khawar Shah, and CEO Salman Naseer (in Bali), Jay Shah and the SLC were on the same page," the source said.
As per the source, Shah explained that since Pakistan remained the host of the event and Sri Lanka's venue and facilities were used, SLC's dues should be cleared by PCB. SLC president Shami Silva expressed concern to the ACC that PCB had still not cleared the bills for hotel stays and chartered flights.
He was advised by Jay Shah to directly deal with the PCB.
Meanwhile, Naseer assured Silva that some bills about hotel stays and venue rentals were "in the process of verification and would be cleared soon" by the PCB.
However, the issue of expenses for the chartered flights remains unresolved as PCB insisted that flights were booked through Classic Travel, a "non-prequalified" Sri Lankan company.
The PCB has so far paid an upfront amount of $281,700 and agreed to give SLC $2,069,885 for the venues. However, it has changed its stance and is pushing for the ACC to share some of the additional costs and pay the hosting fee of 2.5 million dollars.
(PTI inputs)