Pakistan showed up for an Asia Cup match against the UAE on Wednesday, but not before causing a dramatic delay after the ICC's persistent rejection of its demand for removal of match referee Andy Pycroft. The team had refused to leave their hotel for the must-win group match, which got delayed by an hour as a result.
Pycroft will be officiating the match, as decided earlier, although Pakistan had been demanding that Richie Richardson should replace the Zimbabwean for all their remaining matches.
Teams are required to report at the stadium two hours before the start of the game, which Pakistan did not do in protest. That Pycroft would remain match referee was communicated to PCB chairman and Asian Cricket Council head Mohsin Naqvi by ICC CEO Sanjog Gupta in a conference call. The ICC maintained that the Zimbabwean will remain in charge as he has followed the rules and regulations to the “T”.
On Wednesday, once the Pakistan team didn't leave from the Grosvenor Hotel in Dubai, it was evident that the deadlock continued after the rejection of a second PCB complaint by the ICC. Pycroft himself was present at the Dubai International Stadium and left the venue surrounded by bodyguards after he was called to the ICC Headquarters just a kilometre away from the ground.
The ICC gave a six-point rebuttal in which maintained that the PCB's complaints were baseless. The ICC stated in its written communication: "The ICC's investigation was conducted on the basis of the information provided in the report lodged by the PCB. We took the report at face value and note that no supporting documentation or evidence was provided with it. The PCB had every opportunity to submit statement from its team members alongside the initial report, but chose not to do so."
The second point stated that there was "no case to answer" on the part of match referee. "The actions that match referee took, following clear directions to him from the ACC (Asian Cricket Council) Venue Manager, were consistent with how a match referee will deal with such an issue, communicated as it was, with no time for him to do anything else (minutes before the toss)," the ICC said.
Also read: Pakistan to play on, but wants Pycroft replaced
The ICC was clear in its third pointer that Pycroft was committed to "preserving the sanctity of the toss and avoiding any potential embarrassment that might have arisen”. "The match referee was not at fault in any of this. It is not the role of the match referee to regulate any team or tournament-specific protocols, which have been agreed outside of the area of play… that is a matter for the tournament organisers and relevant team managers," the ICC added.
The conclusion was a terse one where the ICC brass wondered if "...the PCB's real concern or complain relates to the actual decision that handshakes didn't take place". "The PCB should therefore direct those complaints to the tournament organiser and those who took the actual decision (which was not the Match referee). The ICC doesn't have a role in that." In conclusion, the ICC actually put the ball back in ACC chairman Mohsin Naqvi and tournament director Andy Russell's court.
Naqvi took advice from two former PCB chairmen, Ramiz Raja and Najam Sethi, before deciding that the team would continue. It is not known what transpired in that meeting, but soon after Naqvi took to 'X' and announced, "We have asked the Pakistan team to depart for the Dubai cricket stadium. Further details to follow." The team left the venue soon after that.
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