PCB Protests ICC for Ignoring Representative at Champions Trophy Ceremony

Under fire for not sending its representative on stage at the award ceremony after the Champions Trophy final, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has lodged a protest with the International Cricket Council (ICC) for ignoring its representative during the event held in Dubai on Sunday.

Telecom Asia Sport reported on Monday that senior PCB officials said that the PCB has written a strongly-worded letter to the ICC management protesting why its representative present at the stadium was not invited to the podium for the ceremony.

Pakistan is the official host of the Champions Trophy, which was held on a hybrid model, with Rohit Sharma's team playing their matches in Dubai after the Indian government did not give permission to the team to travel to the neighbouring country.

Senior officials said that PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi has told the ICC that he will not attend the final as he was busy with the session of the country's joint parliament on Monday. Naqvi is also the home minister of the country.

PCB Chief Operating Officer Sumair Ahmed attended the final in place of Naqvi, but as per ICC protocol, he was not eligible to attend the ceremony, which the PCB has objected to.

"The PCB has formally lodged a protest with the ICC for not including PCB COO and CT25 tournament director Sumair Ahmed Syed in yesterday's presentation ceremony," officials close to the board told Telecom Asia Sport on Monday. "

As per the ICC protocol, the head of the ICC distributes the awards and trophies, while the host country is represented on the podium. New Zealand Cricket (NZC) director Roger Tooce, BCCI president Roger Binny and BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia were on the podium. ICC President Jay Shah handed over the trophy to Rohit Sharma after India defeated New Zealand in the final.

The report said that the PCB has taken the stand that when Saikia and Twos can be invited to the podium despite not being the head of their respective boards, Ahmed should also have been invited to the podium. Officials aware of the matter said that in its letter, the PCB has pointed out various mistakes made by the ICC during the event.

"The ICC made several mistakes during the event, including changing the 'logo' of the Champions Trophy 2025 on the broadcast feed during India's match against Bangladesh and then playing India's national anthem in the Australia vs England match in Lahore," an official said. "

--IANS