The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has given the green signal to the players to leave the hotel for the Dubai Cricket Stadium, where Pakistan will play against the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in their final group-stage match.
PCB held discussions with the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) officials via an online setup. Board Chairman Mohsin Naqvi also consulted with the former heads, Ramiz Raja and Najam Sethi, over the matter.
The match will now begin at 8:00pm according to Pakistani time, with a delay of about an hour.
Match referee Andy Pycroft apologised to the Pakistan Captain Agha Salman, and the Manager Naveed Akram, in a meeting prior to the match. Head coach Mike Hesson was also present in the meeting.
PCB had toughened its stance over the controversial match referee Andy Pycroft ahead of the Green Shirts’ match against the UAE scheduled for today (Wednesday) in the ongoing Asia Cup.
The PCB sent another letter to the International Cricket Council (ICC), expressing strong reservations over the ICC’s failure to take action against Andy Pycroft.
Sources confirmed that the ICC has agreed to replace Andy Pycroft with Richie Richardson as the match referee for the Pakistan-UAE fixture.
According to sources, the PCB’s second letter rejected the ICC’s decision not to take disciplinary action against Pycroft and reiterated that Pakistan would boycott any match officiated by him.
The PCB reportedly criticised the ICC’s inquiry into the matter, calling it a mere formality, stating that key aspects were overlooked and relevant individuals were not consulted.
Pakistan refused to play under Andy Pycroft and made it clear in the letter that its boycott stance would remain unless the demand for his removal was met.
The sources indicate that Pakistan emphasised the need to address all concerns comprehensively and will only agree to play once a formal announcement is made confirming that all its conditions have been met.
The controversy erupted after Andy Pycroft allegedly asked the Pakistan and India captains not to shake hands at the toss before their Asia Cup 2025 fixture on Sunday.
The PCB later filed an official complaint with the International Cricket Council (ICC), accusing Pycroft of violating the “Spirit of Cricket”.
It is important to note that, under ICC regulations, a match referee cannot directly issue instructions to the captain or players.
The referee is only authorised to communicate through the team manager.
Sunday’s match was the first since the two countries were involved in an armed conflict in May this year.
