The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is expected to seek the renewal of the contract of an independent foreign security company. The PCB believes the services offered by the firm paved the way for the revival of cricket in Pakistan.
The services of the firm were taken up by the PCB in order to monitor the security situation of the country. It has been working with the PCB since 2017 and was funded by the International Cricket Council (ICC).
The firm received a sum of $1.4 million annually by the governing body of cricket. Its primary task was monitoring the security situation in the country and advising the ICC, boards and player associations accordingly.
The PCB is expected to renew the contract for the firm in order to continue their quest of bringing international cricket back to Pakistan. “The PCB Chairman, Ehsan Mani and Managing Director, Wasim Khan will submit a proposal that the ICC renew the contract of the company for another three years and ICC bear the fees again,” one well-informed source told PTI.
The source credited the PCB partnership with the firm for the success achieved in the past two years in terms of bringing international cricket back to the country. “It was due to the coordination between the security company and the PCB that the ice was broken in 2017 and the ICC sent a World Eleven to Lahore in September, 2017 followed by a visit by the Sri Lankan team to play a lone T20 and then the West Indies team to play a series of three T20 matches in Karachi,” the source said.
The PCB is currently trying to persuade the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and Cricket Australia (CA) to send their teams to play in Pakistan. The security company can help the PCB significantly in this regard.
“That is why the PCB wants the company to be given an extended contract for three years as it now works to convince the English and Wales Cricket Board and Cricket Australia to play some matches of their series against Pakistan in the next 12 months,” the source said. The PCB is also making efforts to pursue other boards to send their teams to Pakistan in order to assess the security situation of the country.
“The PCB is also working on convincing other boards to start sending A teams, under-19 teams and women’s team to Pakistan,” the source said.
