Pakistan team checks in for training, PCB awaits Islamabad green light

The top brass of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) were awaiting clearance from Islamabad on Tuesday after the handshake fiasco but their players tried to appear chirpy on the eve of the team's Asia Cup game against UAE.

Post the loss on Sunday, when the Indian players refused to shake hands with their Pakistani counterparts as a mark of respect to the victims of the Pahalgam terror attack in which 26 people were killed, the PCB had asked for the removal of match referee Andy Pycroft citing violation of ICC rules and regulations, only to be rejected by the game's global governing body.

Incidentally, the rejection letter that the PCB received from the ICC was signed by its general manager Waseem Khan, who was formerly the beleaguered cricket board's CEO.

The day was full of intrigue after the ICC rejected PCB's plea. It is understood that they are still trying to convince the ICC to allow Richie Richardson for the UAE game, which will be a face-saver for PCB chief Mohsin Naqvi, who is also the interior minister in the Shahbaz Sharif government.

A section of the Pakistan media reported that Naqvi's scheduled meeting with Prime Minister Sharif was primarily related to interior ministry affairs and had little to do with the Asia Cup pullout issue.

In fact, if Pakistan happens to pull out of the tournament, they will lose around USD 16 million, which is a significant amount for a cricket board not half as rich as the BCCI.

There was a scheduled press conference in the evening ahead of the UAE game but around an hour and a half before the Pakistan team's arrival for training, it was cancelled.

"They want to keep cards close to the chest and not answer any questions about boycott," a PCB insider, aware of developments, told PTI.

Amid the buzz that the team might skip the training, the players checked in even as the Indians continued with their gruelling session, which had entered the third hour by then.

The intensity of the two training sessions said it all about the gulf in standards that is widening exponentially with each passing day.

While the Indians had a full-fledged warm-up session with even the likes of Shubman Gill and Abhishek Sharma doing Bronco runs under Adrian Le Roux, the Pakistan team's training comprised a brief and archaic passing-the-football session, something that was in vogue 15 years back.

While one can argue that the team is relaxed despite the on-field hammering from India and the off-field issues, the noise and banter in the company of the strength and conditioning coach did tell a story about suppressed tension, even as the Indian media watched the session from close.

Not once did any Pakistani player venture towards the Indian arena to have a look as their nets started under Mike Hesson.

Meanwhile, on the request of the Indian media contingent, skipper Suryakumar Yadav cut a cake to celebrate his 35th birthday belatedly. His birthday was on Sunday (September 14), when India notched up a convincing victory over Pakistan.