With Pakistan yet to win a match in either the ODI World Cup or T20 World Cup against India, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Ramiz Raja revealed that an investor has promised PCB a “blank cheque” if Pakistan beats Team India in the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup 2021.
Pakistan's economic crisis is not hidden from anyone and even Raja admitted that PCB runs 50% on the funding of the International Cricket Council (ICC), which gets almost 90% of funding from India.
Ever since the former Pakistan captain took over as the new PCB chief, Raja has reiterated that a thriving cricket economy in Pakistan is very much needed to take the game forward and even he has recently stressed on the importance of being self-sufficient rather than relying on the ICC.
Read Also: T20 World Cup 2021: Azhar Mahmood believes India will have edge over Pakistan
After a meeting with the Senate Standing Committee on Inter-Provincial Coordination (IPC), Raja revealed that a strong investor has promised a blank cheque for the PCB if Pakistan beats India in the upcoming T20 World Cup 2021, starting on October 17 in the UAE and Oman.
Well, India has a solid 12-0 record against Pakistan at the ICC World Cups – winning 7 times in the 50-over World Cup and 5 times in the T20 World Cup. In the upcoming tournament, the old foes India and Pakistan are set to meet on October 24 in Dubai to revive the rivalry on the field.
As reported by Cricket Pakistan, Raja stated: “PCB runs 50 percent on the funding of ICC. 90 percent of funding to ICC comes from India. I’m afraid that if India stopped funding ICC, then PCB might collapse because PCB gives zero percent funding to ICC. I’m determined to make Pakistan cricket strong.”
The PCB chief further added, “One strong investor told me that a blank cheque is ready for the PCB if Pakistan beats India in the upcoming T20 World Cup.”
Read Also: Danish Kaneria slams Abdul Razzaq for claiming Pakistan has better talents than India
He also said that top teams like England and New Zealand won’t pull out of the Pakistan tour if Pakistan has strong financial backing. Recently, England and New Zealand called off the Pakistan tour.
Raja mentioned, “If our cricket economy is strong, we won’t be used and then binned by teams like England and New Zealand. Best cricket team and best cricket economy are two big challenges.”
He signed off by saying on the domestic cricketers’ salaries, “We have increased salaries of domestic cricketers by hundred thousand rupees as we want to ensure that they earn at least four million rupees every year. PCB is also looking for sponsors in this regard.”
