PCB administration committee chairman Muhammad Zaka Ashraf had earlier this month formally invited the Indian cricket board chief and his partner to attend the Asia Cup matches in Pakistan and the PCB dinner in Lahore on Sep 4.
Talking to TOI, Binny stated, “BCCI vice-president Rajiv Shukla and I’ll journey to Pakistan by way of the Wagah Border on September 4. Other than the official dinner, we will even witness a few matches.” They may return to India on September 7.
That is the primary go to of a BCCI president to the neighbouring nation after India severed bilateral cricket ties with Pakistan following the 2008 Mumbai terror assaults.
It comes at a time when Pakistan have agreed to ship their group to India for the ICC ODI World Cup starting subsequent month. Earlier than heading to Pakistan, Binny will fly to Sri Lanka for India’s opener towards Pakistan in Pallekele on September 2.
When requested by the board if he would settle for the invitation, Binny stated he had no hesitation.
“As a result of my earlier travels to Pakistan have been very nice. They’re very hospitable. I bear in mind the shops we went to within the 1980s, the store house owners have been excited to host Indians. We have been provided tea at each retailer we visited,” the previous all-rounder recounted.
After India refused to journey to Pakistan for the Asia Cup, Sri Lanka have been roped in as co-hosts with solely 4 of the 13 matches scheduled in Pakistan with Nepal, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh enjoying a match every. The fourth fixture is a Tremendous 4 tie. Binny final visited Pakistan in 2005, as a part of a tempo camp carried out by the Asian Cricket Council.
As a participant, he was a part of a group led by Mohinder Amarnath that performed in Pakistan in 1984.
The sequence was deserted through the second ODI at Sialkot on October 31, following the assassination of then prime minister Indira Gandhi.
Binny identified that the go to augurs properly for the cricket ties between the 2 nations.
“The India-Pakistan rivalry is the fiercest and most adopted in world cricket. It’s even larger than the Ashes. Matches between the 2 nations are good for the game and its recognition,” he added.
