Pakistan’s boycott of its T20 World Cup match against India raises two fundamental questions: why the PCB took this decision, and what it hopes to achieve by it. The fact that neither answer is particularly clear invites a deeper concern, whether this dramatic gesture was fully thought through at all.
To begin with, let’s be clear on a few points. The ICC is controlled by India. It is a governing body that behaves like a wholly owned subsidiary of the BCCI. The ICC does not run international cricket, the BCCI — and therefore the Indian government — does. This is realpolitik. The rule of “might is right”. India is in charge, both as policymaker and paymaster, however you describe it.
India’s malign dictatorship of international cricket is to be condemned, just as the previous dominance of England and Australia had been condemned. Today, India is the Pied Piper of cricket, playing a seductive tune that brings the rats of the world’s cricket boards under its control. Something does need to be done, namely ICC’s power and independence must be restored. But is this what Pakistan’s unilateral boycott will achieve?
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