PCB to propose four-nation T20 tournament at ICC board meeting

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) will propose a four-nation Twenty20 International tournament — featuring Pakistan, India, England and Australia — at the upcoming board meeting of the Inter­national Cricket Council (ICC).

PCB Chairman Ramiz Raja will present the proposal during the meeting to be held in Dubai on April 10. Ramiz and PCB Chief Executive Faisal Hasnain have reached Dubai.

The ICC Executive Committee meeting is scheduled for April 8.

PCB’s proposal is aimed at calling on the global cricket fraternity, specifically the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to ‘rescue the future of international cricket’.

The proposed quadrangular event, if accepted, will also replace meaningless T20 Inter­nationals on bilateral basis.

“By doing so, the event can be made interesting, competitive and attractive, as well as commercially viable and profitable and the best way to do it was through creating a quadrangular tournament featuring the famous rivalries of Pakistan and India and England and Australia,” the paper work prepared for the proposal suggested.

“This means earnings from this tournament can potentially be distributed amongst the ICC members, which will provide them further stability to grow and develop cricket in their respective territories,” it added.

This idea of Ramiz is taken from the Rugby 7s concept, which runs parallel to the Rugby World Cup. In this regard, Ramiz has suggested an independent body to exploit commercial avenues, coordinate with the participating boards and run the event.

The PCB chairman has also suggested the event can be staged on a rotation basis, which will keep it relevant and fan-engaging.

It is understood Ramiz has discussed the proposal with a few other board representatives, who are open for discussion when the Board meets in Dubai.

The bilateral series calendar for the 2024-25 cycle will also be decided in the ICC meetings and PCB will try to seek three-match Test series in each of Pakistan`s series.

According to sources, PCB’s four-nation T20 event proposal could carry weight if the BCCI comes to its support. Otherwise, the PCB can propose to include Pakistan, Australia and England as permanent members and add one different country every year.

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