PCB banking on 'understanding' with Pawar to resolve 2011 World Cup hosting issues

Lahore, June 18 (ANI): The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is hoping that its mutual understanding with the Board of Cricket Control in India's former chief, Sharad Pawar, would help it resolve the 2011 World Cup hosting rights issues with the International Cricket Council (ICC).

Sources privy to the PCB chief Ijaz Butt said that he is banking on the understandings reached with Pawar to resolve the hosting rights issues with the ICC, when all the top officials of major cricket playing nations meet in London on June 19.

"The PCB voted in favour of Sharad Pawar for ICC president post, and Chairman Ijaz Butt has every reason to be optimistic," a source close to PCB chief said.

However, some of the sources said that the PCB would not change its earlier stand over hosting the matches, and certainly not agree to receive hosting fee without getting any game.

"The PCB is not asking for any favour. They may not agree to receive only the hosting fees without organizing the allotted matches. The PCB is also likely to deny the offer of free hosting Pakistan matches in India and other countries," The Nation quoted sources, as saying.

The PCB has even put forth plans to host its share of matches in the UAE, rather than relocating them to the other three hosting countries India, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh.

According to the sources, the PCB might agree to host a reduced number of matches, and it would retain hosting fees for the other matches it agrees to concede to the other host countries.

The ICC had stripped Pakistan of the hosting rights of mega-event citing security reasons following the brazen terror attacks on the visiting Sri Lanka cricket team in Lahore in March.

Later, the PCB launched a legal battle against the game's apex authority, which forced the other three host nations and the ICC to discuss and resolve the issue. (ANI)