Delegation from Pakistan to visit ICC World Cup 2023 venues: Report

The countdown for the ICC ODI World Cup 2023 to be held in India has begun. Many obstacles are being put by Pakistan regarding the World Cup being held in India. Meanwhile, a delegation will be sent to India to inspect the venues before the Pakistan cricket team is allowed to travel to India.

 

Regarding the tournament, an official source in the Sports Ministry said that the new chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board is to be elected after the Eid holidays. After this, the government, including the Ministry of External Affairs and the Interior, will decide when to send the security delegation to India. This delegation will come to visit stadiums in India.

 

The security delegation will go along with the PCB representation to inspect the venues where Pakistan will play and also inspect the security and other arrangements made for them in the World Cup. The venue will visit Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Ahmedabad.

 

In fact, if Pakistan has to tour India, then it is a necessary standard for the cricket board to first get permission from the government for this tour. In this series, a delegation is also sent to India. The delegation will interact with the authorities there and discuss and inspect the security and other arrangements for our players, officials, fans and media going for the tournament.”

 

He said that if the delegation felt that it would be better for Pakistan to play at some other venue instead of the designated venue, it would mention the same in its report. “If the delegation has any concerns, the PCB will share the report with the ICC and the BCCI,” he added.

 

A PCB source said that the last time Pakistan toured India for the T20 World Cup, the government had sent a joint delegation to inspect the venues. Let us inform that at that time also Pakistan’s match against India in Dharamshala was shifted to Kolkata on the recommendation of the delegation. The informed source said that the final confirmation of Pakistan’s participation in the World Cup will be announced only after the government clears the PCB. Pakistani officials have said this is not unusual and is standard procedure for all visits to India. Even in other sports, the respective national federations have to take approval from the government to send their teams to India for any competition.