Vijay Goel: India and Pakistan can't play bilateral series
On Monday, sports minister Vijay Goel ruled out the possibility of an India-Pakistan bilateral series in the near future stating terrorism in the latter state as the reason. The BCCI is scheduled to meet the PCB in Dubai today to discuss the MOU signed by the two boards in 2014.
"India and Pakistan can't play bilateral series till the terror from Pakistan remains," Goel told TOI. "BCCI should speak to the government before giving any proposal to Pakistan. I have made it clear that bilateral cricket with Pakistan is not possible till the time there is cross-border terror. We have, however, no say on multilateral events (ICC tournaments)."
The two boards had signed a Memorandum Of Understanding(MOU) according to which the teams were to play six bilateral series against each other from 2015 to 2023. However, due to the ongoing diplomatic tension between the two countries, the two sides have been unable to play each other although they continue to face-off in major ICC events.
The PCB had earlier in the month drafted a letter to the Indian board demanding a compensation of USD 60 million for the breach of the MOU. However, the acting secretary of BCCI, Amitabh Chaudhary will meet his Pakistani counterpart, Shahryar Khan in Dubai to explain the reason for the breach.
BCCI has already clarified its stance on the matter stating that "the matter must be viewed in context including the diplomatic relationship between India and Pakistan."
Moreover, the Indian board has explained that according to the International Cricket Council's(ICC) general reforms meeting, the Future Tours Program(FTP) is not defined as a long-form agreement, rather they just document the tentative understandings between the two boards.
"BCCI is ready and willing to engage in meaningful discussions with the PCB within the broad framework set