BCCI has agreed to five bilateral series against Pakistan, says PCB chairman Najam Sethi

Najam Sethi

Pakistan cricket board chief, Najam Sethi has confirmed that PCB and BCCI have signed an agreement to play two ‘home’ and three away bilateral series in the next cycle of Future Tours Programme.

“I don’t want to go into the details or make premature statements but India has signed agreements with all Boards, including Pakistan. We are looking at three ‘home’ and two away bilateral series with India in the next cycle of FTP under this agreement,” Sethi told a television channel.

After the BCCI confirmed to play the five bilateral series in the next cycle of FTP, Sethi said PCB had agreed to assist the administrative and monetary service in the ICC.

Sethi clarified that ‘home’ series could mean that the matches may be played at a neutral venue such as UAE or some other country.

“In the past, the Indian Board was not even willing to enter into any such agreement with us nor ready to play us at neutral venues but now we have got both things. And when the series approaches and Memorandum of Understanding is signed, then more details will be worked out between both Boards which will be beneficial to Pakistan cricket,” he said.

However, India-Pakistan matches are always prone to changes as the political relations between the two countries seem unfavourable.

“At the end of the day, the political climate in both countries and existing relations decide the fate of a series. But the positive thing is that we have got the Indian Board to an agreement with us that foresees at least five series in the next cycle,” he stated.

It is rumoured that India and Pakistan might play a shorter series at a neutral venue in a few months but Sethi was unwilling to give out details regarding the same.

The PCB chief also epressed the dilemma the Board was put in when the ‘Big Three’ issue had cropped up. The Board was left to choose the best in order to prevent isolation.

“We could have got more out of this issue but we let the opportunity slip out of our hands,” he stated.

On being asked about the security conditions for international teams in Pakistan, Sethi said, “We are however working on this in our own way and recently we even sent a comprehensive security plan to the Scotland Yard and they approved it,”