Karachi, Lahore ready to provide foolproof security for PSL, says Najam Sethi

PCB executive committee chairman says PSL's organisers are already in contact with some foreign players

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) executive committee chairman, Najam Sethi, believes the Pakistan Super League (PSL) belongs to the country and is determined to bring at least two matches to the home fans in the next edition.

"We are determined to bring PSL to Pakistan where it belongs," said Sethi, adding that the tournament’s organisers were already in contact with some foreign players.



“The authorities in Karachi and Lahore are urging us to convince players to visit the country and they are ready to provide foolproof security.”

The PSL chairman said he discussed the matter with Dean Jones and Kevin Pietersen and both showed positive signs.



Sethi’s hope to organise a couple of matches in Pakistan derives from the improving security situation since government and army are doing their best to eradicate terrorism.

When asked about the financial aspect of the event, Sethi said that there was a lot of money in Pakistan and people were ready to splash it on cricket.

"This year we had five teams and believe me I am receiving many offers from the people who want to buy the sixth franchise," he said.



"It is a win-win situation for Pakistan. We need to invest something to earn in future and signs look brighter for the PSL team owners. All the franchise owners are more than happy and they are ready to invest more money. The successful organisation has multiplied the value of their brand," he added.

Sethi also commented on the Pakistan-India series saying that India owes Pakistan two home tours and the revenues of those series belong to Pakistan.



"It is sad that the two giants of Asia are not playing bilateral cricket,” he said. “First of all, India owes us our two home series and then we will tour India. We are ready to play our home series anywhere [UAE, Sri Lanka or Bangladesh] and the ball is in India's court. I hope there may be a series between Pakistan and India in September. It will be our series and all the revenue will go to the PCB.”

'Biggest achievement in PSL is transparency'

Sethi, while addressing the media on Friday, said that PSL's biggest achievement was the level of transparency at each stage.

"One of the biggest achievement in PSL was transparency," said Sethi. "We followed the best international practices. There was no corruption. There was not even a hint of it."