LAHORE: Former Pakistan captain Aaqib Javed was left surprised by West Indies cricketer Chris Gayle’s statement on the Pakistan-India clash in this year’s ICC World Cup in India.
Recently, Gayle had said that India and Pakistan’s players should demand more money for playing in the much-anticipated encounter.
"Whenever those teams [India and Pakistan] play, especially in a World Cup, the revenues they generate are humongous. One game can take care of the entire ICC event,” Gayle told PTI.
“Pakistan and India players should demand a lot of money for those games because those games are high-paid games TV-wise. I don't control the board or the ICC. If I was in their position, I would want a lot more."
However, Javed, while talking to media in Lahore, termed Gayle’s statement “weird” while stating that the “cricket boards and players are not in a position to make such a demand”.
He also named Pakistan as one of the top contenders for the ICC World Cup 2023.
“Pakistan team right now is much better than before and should be considered as one of the favourites for the World Cup,” he said.
10 teams will fight for the ICC Cricket World Cup trophy across 10 venues from October 5 to November 19, with the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad hosting the tournament opener and the final.
The match between Pakistan and India will be played on October 15 in Ahmedabad.
The 1992 World Cup winner also spoke about how politics could impact Pakistan’s cricket.
“Our cricket will be ruined, like hockey, if Sports and politics are not kept separate. Cricket policies should remain the same even if there is a change in chairmanship,” he said.
Here is Pakistan's schedule for the ICC World Cup 2023:
October 6 - vs Qualifier 1 in Hyderabad
October 12 - vs Sri Lanka in Hyderabad
October 15 - vs India in Ahmedabad
October 20 - vs Australia in Bengaluru
October 23 - vs Afghanistan in Chennai
October 27 - vs South Africa in Chennai
October 31 - vs Bangladesh in Kolkata
November 4 - vs New Zealand Bengaluru (Day match)
November 12 - vs England in Kolkata
The day matches which will start at 10:00am Pakistan Standard Time (PST) while all other matches will be day-night fixtures starting at 01:30pm (PST).
Sohail Imran Sohail Imran is a senior reporter for Geo News.- Chris Gayle