Pakistan cricket's board said on Tuesday it had written to the International Cricket Council, stepping up its challenge against a decision to strip the troubled country of World Cup matches. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said Saturday it was mounting a legal challenge to an ICC decision to move matches for the World Cup 2011 out of the country over security fears.
The PCB has branded the decision legally flawed and said Tuesday it had written to Michael Beloff, president of the ICC disputes resolution committee. The letter was written "to refer the matter to the arbitration tribunal appointed in accordance with the rules of Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) to be held in United Kingdom," said the PCB.
The ICC last month stripped Pakistan of 14 World Cup matches, including a semi-final, citing the "uncertain security situation" in the country. Co-hosts India will now have 29 matches including a semi-final and the final, while Sri Lanka will host 12 matches with one-semi-final, and Bangladesh will hold eight matches and the opening ceremony.
The PCB said the decision to remove Pakistan as a co-host contravened ICC articles and the 2006 agreement that awarded the competition jointly to Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. "The decision was taken by ICC executive board therefore PCB deems it appropriate that in the interest of justice, equity and fair play the matter should be adjudicated by CAS," said the PCB. CAS is an international body based in Switzerland.
"As time is of essence, PCB expects the ICC to expedite the matter." Former ICC president Ehsan Mani has also criticised the ICC decision, saying the manner in which it had been taken was "ill-conceived" and "made in haste" - a charge denied by the ICC. Pakistan's already dented reputation as a safe venue was in tatters after attacks by gunmen on the Sri Lankan team bus in Lahore on March 3 left seven Sri Lankan players and their assistant coach wounded and eight policemen dead.
Even before the attacks, foreign teams refused to tour Pakistan over security fears in a country locked in an increasingly bloody conflict with Taliban and al Qaeda extremists. In February, the ICC moved the eight-nation Champions trophy from Pakistan to South Africa after several teams refused to tour Pakistan.