The first week of the Champions Trophy has been eventful, but also a series of mishaps that have strained relations between the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and the International Cricket Council (ICC). Following PCB’s complaint to the ICC regarding a broadcasting error during India’s first match against Bangladesh in Dubai, another humiliating incident occurred during the Australia vs. England match in Lahore.
National Anthem Mix-Up
When the teams assembled at Gaddafi Stadium to play their Champions Trophy opener, a big mistake was made. Instead of being played the national anthem of England, India’s anthem was played for a fraction of a second. This mishap put the PCB in a tricky situation, and they issued a formal letter to the ICC seeking an explanation for the blunder.
PCB’s Reaction And Demand For Explanation
The PCB explained that the ICC had to provide explanations since the tournament anthem playlist was handled by the team of the ICC. A close source to the ICC confirmed that the PCB insisted on getting explanations for the debacle, which happened during an international high-profile event.
India Not Playing Matches In Pakistan
This event takes on greater importance against the backdrop of the Champions Trophy’s venue choice. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had declined to send the Indian team to Pakistan for the tournament following the failure of the Indian government to grant clearance. Consequently, Dubai was selected as the host for all of India’s matches after extensive negotiations between the PCB and BCCI.
PCB Logo Controversy
There was another controversy earlier in the week when the ICC did not show the Pakistan logo during India’s match against Bangladesh. According to Cricbuzz, although the broadcast of the Champions Trophy usually had a three-line branding with ‘Pakistan’ clearly visible as the host country, it was absent during the India-Bangladesh match.
ICC Admits Error And Makes Adjustments
At first, ICC replied that the missing logo was a matter of the size of the graphic. But later on, after some discussions, the ICC confessed to the error and assured that it would go back to using the original graphic in all subsequent matches.
