The International Cricket Council Dispute Committee has dismissed Pakistan Cricket Board’s case against the Board of Cricket for Control in India, an ICC release stated on Tuesday (November 20). The ICC confirmed that the decision was binding and non-appealable.
The hearing which took place from October 1-3 in Dubai had PCB claiming damages in the tune of USD 70 million stemming from BCCI’s failure to play two series in November 2014 and December 2015.
“Following a three-day hearing and having considered detailed oral and written submissions, the Dispute Panel has dismissed the PCB’s claim against the BCCI. The judgement is binding and non-appealable,” said the ICC release.
The dispute started after PCB alleged that the BCCI did not honour the MoU signed by the two boards in 2014 that required India to play six bilateral series over eight years between 2015 and 2023 with four of those to be hosted by the PCB.
The first of the proposed series was planned in November 2015 in the UAE but BCCI didn’t get permission from the government which is mandatory for any bilateral cricketing engagement with Pakistan.
The PCB went on to claim compensation for losing out on TV revenue for that particular series.
India’s former external affairs minister Salman Khurshid was among those who was cross-examined during the dispute panel hearing. According to a senior BCCI official, he justified India’s refusal to play bilateral cricket with Pakistan, citing security concerns.
The BCCI had stated that the MoU was not binding and that Pakistan failed to support the revenue model suggested by India for ICC.
BCCI also claimed that they have no authority on the bilateral cricket played between the two countries and had to follow the diktat of the Indian government.
“We are happy that our stand has been vindicated. What PCB termed as Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was just a proposal letter,” CoA chief Vinod Rai told PTI.
“I would like to thank the BCCI legal team as well as everyone who worked on this arbitration.”
Rai further said that BCCI will now file a counter compensation case against the PCB to demand the cost of arbitration.
“We will make a presentation to the panel and demand entire cost of compensation to be borne by the PCB for the arbitration where there claims have been dismissed,” he added.
The PCB, on their part called the decision a “disappointment” and stated that a further course of action will be taken after consultations with its stakeholders.
“In relation to the proceedings brought by PCB against BCCI, the PCB notes with regret the decision of the Disputes Panel of the ICC’s Dispute Resolution Committee,” PCB said in a press release.
“In 2017, PCB had claimed that BCCI had breached an agreement that it had signed with PCB on 9th April 2014 and had referred the matter to ICC’s Dispute Panel. Following a lengthy disputes resolution process, the announcement of the decision today has come as a disappointment for PCB.
“PCB will determine its future course of action in this regard after detailed deliberations and consultations with its stakeholders,” the board added.
The three-member panel of the ICC Dispute Panel was chaired by Hon. Michael Beloff QC, Jan Paulsson and Annabelle Bennett.
(With inputs from PTI)
