BCCI Secretary Jay Shah breaks silence on visit to Pakistan

Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Secretary Jay Shah, who reportedly accepted the invitation to visit Pakistan, has denied any such reports, saying they were probably based on mischief.

It was earlier reported that Shah, who is also the president of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) had accepted Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Management Committee Chairman Zaka Ashraf's invitation to visit Pakistan, during a meeting on the sidelines of the chief executives’ committee (CEC) meeting of the International Cricket Council (ICC)’s annual session in Durban, South Africa, on Tuesday.

“I have not agreed to anything. This is just plain miscommunication. Probably done deliberately or mischievously. I’ll not be making any visit," Shah told News18 CricketNext on Wednesday morning.

Earlier, while talking to The News from Durban, PCB's Ashraf confirmed his two meetings with Indian officials on Tuesday.

"First, it was three on three meeting with all leading officials present from both countries, who engaged in group meetings,” said Ashraf.

“Later, it was one on one meeting. I discussed different options to resume cricketing ties with Jay Shah, who was also positive and accepted my invitation to tour Pakistan during or before the start of the Asia Cup.

“He also invited me to take a trip to India during the World Cup, which I accepted. I told him that the Pakistani nation always respected their guests and welcomed them.”

Ashraf said that both sets of meetings were fruitful as cricketing officials of both countries heard each other's points of view.

The best thing is that both the cricketing boards have agreed to improve ties through future talks, added Ashraf.

Following years of break, such negotiations could well be the beginning of the renewal of cricket between the two countries.

The Asia Cup cricket tournament will be played from August 31 to September 17 in the 50-over format.

India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and Nepal will compete in a total of 13 ODI matches.

These teams are divided in two groups with Group A including Pakistan, India and Nepal. Meanwhile, Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka are in Group B.