There’s a great line in the constitution of the International Cricket Council (ICC) which pertains to the various conditions that need to be respected and adhered to by the member nations.
Actually, there are plenty of good lines, but this one brings the house down every time:
Every member agrees to “manage its affairs autonomously and ensure that there is no government (or other public or quasi-public body) interference in its governance, regulation and/or administration of cricket”.
Even those of you with just a passing interest in cricket will surely have smiled.
A couple of members have actually been summoned to the headmaster’s office for breaching this clause, and two were suspended.
Cricket heavyweights Zimbabwe and the US were told to stay at home while their parents were spoken to. But not Sri Lanka, where the minister of sport assumed control of the national team and even selected squads a couple of years ago.
And certainly not Pakistan. India is also guilty of this infraction, but, technically and practically, it would be difficult for the ICC to suspend India since the Board of Control for Cricket (BCCI) in India moved into the ICC’s offices in Dubai and took over. Technical and practical issues aside, suspension would be financial suicide.
The president of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), Mohsin Naqvi, is also the country’s interior minister, while the country’s prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif, is the honorary patron of the PCB.
The BCCI ceased to be a purely sporting body years ago. By aligning itself (or “being aligned”) so closely to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s BJP, it has become a political arm. Or army. The BJP has systematically weaponised the sport of cricket and is becoming increasingly brazen about using it — primarily against Pakistan and Bangladesh — and without any concern for who is caught in the crossfire.
Modi’s interior minister, Amit Shah, is the father of Jay Shah, chair of the ICC.
The PCB is notoriously haphazard, hot-headed and disorganised. It is historically reactive rather than proactive, like the announcement 10 days ago that they would not be participating in the T20 World Cup.
That was “downgraded” 48 hours ago, on government advice, to, “Will not play against India.” Naqvi the politician had a word with Naqvi the cricket guy on the way forward.
Should Pakistan actually forfeit that match, the ICC will lose something like $450m in broadcast revenue. It’s the richest single game in international sport outside the soccer World Cup final.
It wouldn’t affect the BCCI, which takes 38.5% of the global revenue share and has the $6.5bn Indian Premier League (IPL) as its other piggy bank. And the PCB have just sold two new franchises in the expanded Pakistan Super League, so it’s feeling flush.
But it would dramatically affect all of the small associate nations and even Test-playing nations such as Sri Lanka, New Zealand, the West Indies and (especially) South Africa.
What might the ICC/BCCI do about this situation? The PCB signed the legally binding member participation agreement, which means there will be, or could be, enormous ramifications for Pakistan — and world cricket — unless it can make the legally compelling case that conditions have materially changed in the time after the signing.
The PCB could be suspended from bilateral cricket. Overseas players could be denied NOCs (no-objection certificates) to play in the PSL, which would really hurt the tournament — and Pakistan’s pride. It could be suspended from the lucrative Asia Cup.
This isn’t just politics interfering in sport; it’s fully armed politics escorting cricket to the stadium and then opening the batting and the bowling.
When India refused to play the Champions Trophy in host nation Pakistan in 2024, an agreement was brokered that neither team would play in the other’s country. The agreement saw India play all of their games in Dubai, which helped them to easily win the tournament.
New Zealand, their vanquished opponents in the final, travelled more than 7,000km during the three weeks. India travelled about 700m, but only on match days.
The ICC (BCCI) issued a statement yesterday dripping with sanctimonious hypocrisy: its tournaments are “built on integrity, competitiveness, consistency and fairness. Selective participation undermines the spirit and sanctity of the competitions.”
Humbug. This isn’t just politics interfering in sport; it’s fully armed politics escorting cricket to the stadium and then opening the batting and the bowling.
There are times to stand up against hegemonies like the one India has over global cricket, and there are times to keep very still and say nothing. If it means losing your wallet and watch, so be it. Cricket South Africa is not the only hostage in the building.
The Proteas play their opening game against minnows Canada next Monday.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.