Asia Cup 2023: Will Pakistan travel to India for ICC World Cup? PCB boss Najam Sethi gives ultimate response

On Friday, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Najam Sethi clarified that Pakistan will travel to India for the 2023 ICC World Cup only if the Rohit Sharma-led team can play the upcoming Asia Cup and the 2025 Champions Trophy in his country. The Asian Cricket Council (ACC) recently rejected the "hybrid model", which the former journalist feels is the only feasible solution until India and Pakistan start playing each other in their respective nations. Sethi also said that if India comes to Pakistan, their national team will have no issues playing in any Indian city, including Ahmedabad.

Excerpts from an exclusive interview with the PTI:
Q: What is the status of the Asia Cup, and what is ACC's reaction to your proposed Hybrid Model?
A: In the current scenario, we have made it clear that let's play four matches in Pakistan, and we will play the rest of the games at a neutral venue which we can mutually agree upon. The Asian Cricket Council can take two decisions. Either they can say, 'Okay, let's go ahead and issue the schedule' according to my proposal, or they can say, 'No, we want to play all the matches at a neutral venue'.

If they take the first position, everything will be sorted out, and we will get cracking. We won't participate in the Asia Cup if they take the second position. That is the current position. We are waiting for a response from Mr Jay Shah and other colleagues.

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Q: Does it make sense for Pakistan to stay in ACC if they don't play Asia Cup?
A: That is for ACC to consider. The next turn for the ACC presidency belongs to PCB. That's our turn. So, we are very keen to stay with ACC. Let me go beyond that. There can't be any ACC without Pakistan.

India and Pakistan are the two most important members who bring revenue to ACC. It's their matches that get 80 per cent of the broadcast rights. If Pakistan doesn't play Asia Cup, then the broadcaster, that is Star, will have problems. The 45 or 46 million dollars that are supposed to come for the series [Asia Cup] will mostly come from these matches. The way Asia Cup is structured, Pakistan and India play two games minimum, and if they qualify for the final, there is a third match.

That's why India and Pakistan are critical to the Cup and the council. Therefore, it must be mentioned that in Bahrain at the last ACC meeting, I presented the hybrid model to save the Asia Cup, as India had refused to play in Pakistan, the host country, where the problem arose. One solution is to find a neutral venue for the India games.

The BCB president had then said the option of Pakistan not playing the Asia Cup is ruled out. If India comes to Pakistan, the crowds will be hospitable. Still, if India doesn't come and gives no rational reason for not coming to Pakistan when the whole world is coming to Pakistan, then this is the solution I have in mind. We will play India at a neutral venue, but the remaining countries must come and play their matches in Pakistan.

We have gone so far as to say to play only four games in Pakistan and the rest in a neutral venue. So, we have given solutions for one issue: World Cup and Champions Trophy [in Pakistan in 2025]. Because if we don't go to India and play, there will be a problem. And if India doesn't come to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy (2025), then there's the problem.

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Q: India not going to Pakistan is due to political tension, but after former Prime Minister Imran Khan's arrest, don't you think other teams will be wary of going to Pakistan in the current security situation?
A: Imran Khan's protest situation has lasted for six months. The New Zealand national team was playing in Rawalpindi, Lahore, and Karachi when Imran Khan's protest was going on. So, that's not an issue. The security provided to these teams is VVIP presidential security, overriding everything else.

If Islamabad has a hiccup, do you mean you can't have cricket in Pindi, Multan, Lahore or Karachi? No, it doesn't mean that. Let me go further. It is the month of May, and we are talking about Asia Cup in September. Give me a break. Are you saying Pakistan will be up in flames in September and unable to play cricket? Well, then, wait for September and see what happens.

If the situation is such that security can't be provided to teams, let's move it to a neutral venue for all the matches. Do you think we want our honourable guests to face riots in Pakistan? No, we don't. We care for them. Please allow us to be responsible.

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Q: Why can't Ahmedabad be a venue for India vs Pakistan match, as Pakistan played at that same venue in 2005?
A: I have never said that. I have said that no one from the BCCI [Board of Control for Cricket in India] has asked us anything about Ahmedabad. For some strange reason, this is putting the cart before the horse. You are asking me whether we will play in Ahmedabad, but the real question is whether we will play in India. We will play in India if India plays in Pakistan. But if India doesn't play in Pakistan, why should we play in India?

My solution was to let India vs Pakistan matches be played at a neutral venue. That's all. You can't have your cake and eat it too. Now, coming to Ahmedabad, if India comes to Pakistan, we will provide VVIP security at every venue and go to India on reciprocal terms. If India asks us to play in Ahmedabad in reciprocal terms, we will have no problems. We would play wherever they want us to play because we expect them to provide us with the needed security, just as India would wish us to provide them with protection at any venue if India were to play in Pakistan. So, Ahmedabad is not an issue. Let's first resolve India and Pakistan playing in each other's countries.

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Q: If the ACC agrees to a four-match hybrid model, will Pakistan play in India as a hybrid model in World Cup, with Pakistan playing India in Bangladesh might not be a feasible solution?
A: Look, the issue right now is the Asia Cup. I want the hybrid model to work and succeed. It is a formula as we advance for World Cup and Champions Trophy. Because if India refuses to come to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy, we will have a problem. If Pakistan refuses to go to India, there will be problems, won't we?

The root cause is India not coming to Pakistan. So, either we don't play at all or have a compromise while moving the ball forward. So, let's have a solution. India and Pakistan going on in all tournaments -- Asia Cup, World Cup, Champions Trophy will not play each other in each other's country—no big deal. The game will still go on.

Q: India gets around 38.5 per cent in the ICC revenue model. It's a proposal, but do you agree with that?
A: We have asked ICC [International Cricket Council] to provide complete details of ideas and formulas underlying this model. The ICC has provided us with something we want, but only some of what we want. We are writing to ICC to offer us assumptions underlying this model and the formulas used to arrive at this model. We need more than this to tell us that these are the figures. Per the ICC constitution, every member's right is to know how things are done and how certain decisions are taken. We are awaiting those details, and we will take it from there.