England has conveyed to Pakistan it wants the International Cricket Council to intervene in a compensation dispute arising from the forfeited Oval Test after the two countries failed to reach an agreement, an official said on Monday.
”The England and Wales Cricket Board [ECB] in their latest letter, have informed us they are going to the ICC,” Pakistan Cricket Board director of operations Saleem Altaf told Agence France-Presse.
”The ICC will now constitute the disputes resolution committee and set a date for the hearing,” Altaf said.
The ECB had set an October 31 deadline for Pakistan to decide on their demands for £800 000 ($1 498 000) to compensate for lost revenue after Pakistan refused to take field on the fourth afternoon and the August Test was awarded to England.
Pakistan’s refusal followed ball tampering charges levelled against them by umpires Darrell Hair and Billy Doctrove, who changed the ball on suspicions that Pakistani players altered the condition of the ball deliberately.
Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq led the team’s protest for 45 minutes after tea interval and when he finally led the team in the ground the umpires had awarded the match to England — the first forfeit in the 129-year history of cricket.
The ECB originally demanded compensation saying they had to refund 40% to the fans who watched the game on the fourth day and full payment to ticketholders of the fifth day.
PCB chairperson Dr Nasim Ashraf last week described Hair as the main villain of the Oval stand-off, categorically saying Pakistan will not entertain any compensation claims.
He also blamed Inzamam for his part in the Oval incident, saying the Pakistan captain should have led the team back after a short protest.
However, Ashraf said ECB officials would also agree Hair was the cause of the Oval Test ending in a farce. The PCB had also contested that since Hair was an employee of the ICC, the cost should be paid by the ICC. – Sapa-AFP