The Asian Cricket Council (ACC) is in a deadlock with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) over their demands of additional compensation for organising chartered flights between Pakistan and Sri Lanka during the Asia Cup 2023, which it co-hosted in August-September.
The Asia Cup 2023 was organized in a hybrid model in Pakistan and Sri Lanka after the ACC accepted PCB's hybrid model, with the majority of the matches organized in the island nation. This was due to the BCCI refusing to send the Indian team to Pakistan.
A source in PCB stated that apart from seeking the tournament hosting fees, around $250,000, as well as shares from ticketing and sponsorship fees, they have also demanded additional compensation.
“The additional money is for expenses incurred on renting chartered flights for teams between Pakistan and Sri Lanka and other extra expenses like additional hotel and transport fees, which were not included in the initial budget for the Asia Cup,” the PCB source told PTI.
However, the ACC is unwilling to pay additional expenses to the PCB since it believes that Pakistan had agreed for matches to be held in Sri Lanka under its hybrid model, in return for hosting four games of the Asia Cup at home.
PCB paid a Sri Lanka-based company $281,000 for arranging four chartered flights to and fro between Pakistan and the island nation — something that PCB's Cricket Management Committee (CMC) was not comfortable paying upfront as advance.
The source said since the ACC decided to hold matches in Sri Lanka, it was their responsibility to pay for the chartered flights and other additional expenses incurred by the PCB, which, in its meeting, had approved the expenses.
Furthermore, the Pakistani team was slated to return home after playing Afghanistan in Sri Lanka before the Asia Cup began. However since the event was held mostly in Sri Lanka, PCB had to arrange chartered flights between Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka.
The company arranging the flights had set a charge of $281,700 for four chartered aircraft, with full payment required in advance. The PCB also considered selling empty seats on chartered planes to supporters, but the concept was scrapped due to security concerns.
Meanwhile, allegations have surfaced that a key PCB official utilized one of the chartered flights to transport his family to Colombo.
(PTI inputs)
