 "How Jay Shah played a role in the UAE declining Pakistan's request to host PSL 2025")
In the middle of rising military tensions between India and Pakistan, cricket politics seems to be playing out behind the scenes. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had planned to shift the remaining matches of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2025 to Dubai due to the ongoing conflict.
However, it later emerged that the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) reportedly declined their request to host PSL 2025 in the UAE to avoid any misunderstanding in India. This forced Pakistan to postpone the league indefinietely. Meanwhile, a new report in Cricbuzz has now suggested that the International Cricket Council (ICC) chairman Jay Shah had a key role in the ECB’s decision.
India’s silent influence?
Jay Shah, the former BCCI secretary and current ICC Chair, is known to have strong ties with the UAE cricket leadership. It is believed that after a subtle influence from Indian cricket officials, the ECB turned down PCB’s proposal. A senior cricket official was quoted saying, “When soldiers are dying at the border, we cannot keep quiet.”
The relationship between the ECB and BCCI has been very positive, especially after India hosted IPL matches during the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2021 T20 World Cup in the UAE. An ECB official even said, “We owe it to the BCCI and Jay Bhai,” admitting India’s influence.
PCB postpones PSL indefinitely
The PSL had eight matches left, four league games and four playoffs. While the PCB had officially announced the shift to Dubai, they later reversed the decision, saying the tournament was postponed indefinitely instead due to the situation at the Indo-Pak borders that has caused safety concerns.
The reason, according to PCB, was that many foreign players were unwilling to stay and continue due to the situation between the two countries. Overseas players were taken out of Pakistan in a chartered flight early on Saturday. “We care about the mental well-being of players and understand their families’ concerns,” the PCB said.
As per the report, the ECB, after initially agreeing to Pakistan’s request, denied access to the Dubai International Stadium. They reportedly quoted a very high fee for hosting PSL 2025 matches in Dubai, which the financially struggling PCB couldn’t afford and had to back out.
Impact Shorts
View AllMeanwhile, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has suspended the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 for a week.
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