ICC unsure on revival of cricket in Pakistan

David Rischardson refuses to give out any signs of hope for the players or the fans.

KARACHI: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) officials may have been lauded by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for the initiatives taken in the past few months, but it seems that they have failed to get a full backing of the governing body with regards to the revival of international cricket in the country.

The ICC’s General Manager on Cricket David Rischardson, who witnessed the day-night Quaid-i-Azam Trophy final that is being played with an orange ball, refused to give out any signs of hope for the players or the fans.

“We can’t tell you when international cricket will return to Pakistan,” said Richardson who advised the PCB to strengthen its domestic structure to cope with the isolation, citing the example of his own country (South Africa).

“Pakistan should make its domestic cricket structure strong so that it helps them reduce the damage caused by a long isolation from international cricket,” added Richardson, a veteran of 42 Tests and 122 One-Day Internationals. He also made it clear that his visit to Pakistan has little to do with the revival of international cricket in Pakistan.

“I wanted to grab the opportunity of watching a day-night fixture with a coloured ball since the colour of the ball is stopping us from playing a Test under lights. I will also see the state of Pakistan’s domestic structure and the situation in the country during my visit.”

Foreign teams have refused to visit Pakistan since the attack on the Sri Lankan team in Lahore almost two years ago. Pakistan was also removed as co-hosts for the World Cup and has also not been awarded any major ICC event until 2015.

Richardson did praise the PCB for taking positive steps in order to fight corruption in cricket since the spot-fixing scandal broke out in August.

“The PCB has done a good job in the past few months and the initiatives deserve special praise.”

Richardson’s visit gives Pakistan hope

Meanwhile, the PCB is optimistic that the visit would help their bid to convince other countries to resume their tours of Pakistan.

“The message that Richardson will take back will help our cause,” said PCB’s Chief Operating Officer Subhan Ahmed.“His visit will give the much-needed confidence to foreign teams about their safety in Pakistan.”

Published in The Express Tribune, January 14^th,  2011.