Mumbai, March 10 Underfire for not having its representative on the podium for the prize distribution ceremony after the Champions Trophy final, the Pakistan Cricket Board has lodged a protest with the International Cricket Council (ICC) for ignoring its representative during Sunday's event in Dubai.
Senior PCB officials said the PCB has written a strongly worded letter to the ICC management protesting why its representative, who was in the stadium, was not invited to be on the podium for the ceremony, Telecom Asia Sport (www.telecomasia.net) said in a report on Monday.
Pakistan is the official host of the Champions Trophy which was held on a hybrid model with Rohit Sharma's team playing its matches in Dubai after the Indian government did not allow the team to travel to the neighbouring country.
Senior officials said PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi has conveyed to the ICC that he would not be attending the final as he was busy in the country's joint parliament session on Monday. Naqvi is also the interior minister of the country.
In Naqvi's place, PCB chief operating officer Sumair Ahmed attended the final, but as per ICC protocols, he was not eligible to attend the ceremony, a stance contested by the PCB.
"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 (www.telecomasia.net) on Monday.
ICC protocols say the head of the ICC distributes the prizes and trophies, while the host country is represented at the podium. New Zealand Cricket (NZC) Director Roger Twose, BCCI President Roger Binny, and BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia were on the podium as ICC Chair Jay Shah handed the trophy to Rohit Sharma after India defeated New Zealand in the final.
PCB has taken the stance that when Saikia and Twose can be invited to the podium despite not being heads of their respective Boards, then Ahmed should also have been invited to the podium, the report said.
Officials in the know said that in its letter, the PCB pointed out various mistakes committed by the ICC during the event.
"ICC had made a number of errors during the event, including changing the CT25 logo on broadcast feed during India's match against Bangladesh and then playing the India anthem in the Australia versus England match in Lahore," said an official.
"Another ICC event, another controversy. Pakistan's name was erased from a broadcast graphic, anthem mix-up at a marquee match, and the host board was ignored at its own event. When does the accountability start?" the official, who is close to the PCB management, said.
The PCB management has faced severe criticism after its representative was not invited on the podium with former cricketers taking it as a slight to the country in an event they were hosting.
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