Pakistan is preparing to dispatch a security delegation to India to assess the venues before granting approval for the national teams to travel to the neighboring country for this year’s ICC ODI World Cup.
According to a reliable source within the Inter-Provincial Coordination (Sports) Ministry, the government, in collaboration with the foreign and interior ministries, will determine the timing of the security delegation’s visit to India. This decision will be made following the election of the new chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board, which is scheduled to take place after the conclusion of the Eid holidays.
“The security delegation will go with representation from the PCB to inspect the venues where Pakistan will play and also the security and other arrangements made for them in the World Cup,” he said.
He stated that the delegation would be visiting Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata, and Ahmedabad, which is the chosen venue for the highly anticipated India-Pakistan match scheduled for October 15th.
“Before any tour to India it is standard practice for the cricket board to seek permission from the government which normally sends a delegation to India,” the official said.
“The delegation will interact with the officials there and discuss and inspect with them the security and other arrangements for our players, officials, fans and media, who will go for the tournament,” he said.
“The PCB will share the report with the ICC and BCCI if the delegation has any concerns,” he added.
A reliable source within the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has confirmed that during Pakistan’s previous visit to India for the T20 World Cup, the government had dispatched a joint delegation to inspect the venues.
“It was on the recommendation of the delegation that Pakistan’s match at Dharamsala against India was moved to Kolkata.” The source maintained that Pakistan’s final confirmation of participation in the World Cup would only be announced when the government gives clearance to the PCB.
“This is not unusual and it is standard procedure for all tours to India. Even in other sports the respective national federations have to get clearance from the government to send their teams to India for any competition.”
The Pakistan Hockey Federation is currently awaiting clearance to send its team for the Asian Champions Trophy in Chennai, scheduled for August. Similarly, the national football team recently participated in the SAFF Championship in Bengaluru, but only after receiving a last-minute No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the government authorities.
(With inputs from PTI)
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