PCB chief Ehsan Mani admits that they had loose ends in arbitration case

The Pakistan-based governing body had claimed a hefty compensation from BCCI after alleged that they didn't honour a Memorandum of Understanding where six bilateral series between 2015-2023 was agreed. However, The BCCI always maintained that the one-page letter signed by erstwhile secretary Sanjay Patel was only a letter of intent and they could possibly have never played without government permission due to prevailing tension between the neighbouring countries.

"It is disappointing. The fact is that before filing the case the PCB had consulted the queens counsel lawyers in England and were advised that the claim for compensation was strong and on this basis the PCB went into arbitration and litigation. When I took over, the proceedings of the case were nearly complete and if we had withdrawn, it would have shown us as weak. But whatever the situation is right now, we have to face it and move on," Mani told PTI sources.

"The ICC Disputes Resolution Committee didn't accept the MOU as a legally binding agreement although they say morally India should have played against us. Perhaps the documentation on basis of which we decided to claim compensation was not as conclusive as we felt it was. If we had won the case we would have done the same. But we will also be filing for having a look at the costs involved in the case and how it should be shared," Mani added.