Sunil Gavaskar

Calcutta: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Friday rubbished media reports saying it was unhappy with Sunil Gavaskar’s role as ICC’s head of Cricket Committee and wanted Majid Khan to replace the Indian legend.

The denial comes on the very day The Telegraph quoted ICC’s general manager (cricket) Dave Richardson as saying that the proper process had been followed in finalising the new Match Referees’ list. Jawagal Srinath was the only new inclusion, while all four Pakistani nominations had been rejected.

Even the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) stood by Gavaskar and said PCB’s ‘reservations’ were unwarranted.

BCCI secretary Niranjan Shah, in fact, made a very valid point when he said it was no issue that the latest ICC umpires’ Elite panel comprised two Pakistanis but no Indian.

It had been reported that the PCB was miffed at the rejection of all its candidates ? Col Naushad Ali, Talat Ali, Pervez Sajjad and Hasan Jameel ? and accused Gavaskar of bias.

“These are rubbish and baseless reports. We don’t intend preparing any report against Gavaskar. We respect and accept his decisions,” said Abbas Zaidi, PCB’s director board operations.

Zaidi made it clear that the PCB doesn’t make such irresponsible statements.

“We don’t make these sorts of irresponsible and reckless statements. These may be the views of one or two people, I don’t know, but the PCB has got nothing to do with those statements.

“We are an affiliated unit of the ICC and if we have any problem, we know how to address it. We don’t believe in issuing statements or maligning any office-bearer of the ICC, particularly of the stature of Gavaskar,” Zaidi clarified.

Incidentally, Ehsan Mani claimed on Thursday that he, too, had been misquoted in Pakistan on the 2011 World Cup issue.

The ICC president was quoted as saying in Karachi that the late submission of compliance book/manual had weakened Asia’s bid to host the meet. But Mani said in New Delhi he never made such a comment and that he wasn’t even in Karachi on the day he had been quoted as saying so.