PCB’s claim denied; New Zealand team not to play in Pakistan for fundraising
Pakistan Cricket Board yet again became the center of utter controversies as the New Zealand Cricket officially denied on Monday to have made any offer to the PCB regarding New Zealand team’s fund raising tour of Pakistan in order to help the flood effectees there.
New Zealand Cricket Chief Executive Justin Vaughan, in an interview, although endorsed the idea of arranging fund raising matches for the flood effectees but did not back the plan of New Zealand cricketers travelling to Pakistan to make the event happen. His reaction came after the official statement of PCB’s media manager had stated that http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Pakistan-c755. He added that the email had no mention whatsoever of the tour being held inside Pakistan.
Earlier, PCB’s media manager while talking to media had claimed that they have received an email from NZC mentioning the desire to visit Pakistan and play their part in making the relief and rehabilitation process go a step further. Other cricket playing nations such as http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Zimbabwe-c3045 also had assured their support towards this noble cause by showing keen interest in arranging matches to generate funds. As soon as the news was heard by cricket lovers in Pakistan, a ray of utter hope and joy engulfed them as they had been waiting to see international cricket played on their home soil for a long time now.
Vaughan added that NZC could not risk the lives of its players by sending them to a dangerous country like Pakistan. He said he didn’t consider playing in Pakistan as an option for at least this calendar year as according to him the security situation there is still out of control and risking its players’ lives would surely be not a wise decision. Still, Vaughan offered to assist the PCB in raising funds inside Pakistan or at a neutral place for the sake.
Despite this setback, PCB is still planning to organize a fund raising match between Pakistan and England in coordination with the England Cricket Board. The Pakistani team is already in England where it played a test series with the hosts. The venue for this match hasn’t been decided yet but a handsome amount of money is expected to be generated from it that could later be used for the relief efforts.
PCB is also in talks with the South African Cricket Board of Control to arrange a charity match when Pakistan and http://www.senore.com/Cricket/South-Africa-c757 meet for a thrilling encounter in October this year at a Middle East location. The board is also reported to have donated around Rs 11 million for the relief work. The Pakistani team members, who recently won their first Test against England in over nine years, also dedicated a certain percentage of their match fees for this purpose. The England Cricket team joined hands by donating a proportion of their match fees also.
The recent floods in Pakistan have wreaked havoc there affecting more than 40 million people while surpassing the damage caused by Tsunami in South Asia and Katrina in the United States.
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