ICC chairman makes big announcement on India-Pakistan bilateral series – Read here

Newly-appointed International Cricket Council (ICC) chairman Greg Barclay on Monday (November 30) said that he will try his best to bring India and Pakistan on the same page with regards to cricketing matters.

Replying to a query on the relationship between the Board of Control for Cricket in India and the Pakistan Cricket Board, Barclay said these matters are beyond cricket but the ICC will take steps to strengthen relations between the two boards.

“I would love nothing more than for India and Pakistan to be able to continue cricketing relations as they were previously. I am also enough of a realist to understand that there are geo-political issues at play here. I think all we can do at the ICC is to continue to help and support in any way that we can to bring about outcomes that would see India and Pakistan in a position where they can play cricket regularly against each other and in their home territories. Beyond that, I do not think I have the mandate or ability to influence the outcomes more than that. That is really being done at a level way beyond where we would be operating,” Barclay said.

“Rest assured that from the cricketing point of view, we would love to get those countries back together again on a regular basis. The ICC will do whatever it can to help facilitate and support an outcome that might see that happen,” he added.

It is to be noted that Indian government has repeatedly maintained that actions that are not in interest of the country must stop before India starts to play matches against Pakistan in bilateral series.