PCB declines giving NOC for T10 league

Newly-appointed Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Ehsan Mani has made it clear that they would not give No Objection Certificate (NOC) to Pakistani players to participate in this year's T10 League until being fully satisfied with the credibility of the event.

Mani further stated that he has asked the International Cricket Council (ICC) to give it in writing that they are totally satisfied with the league and that it would not land Pakistani players in any sort of dispute.

"I am holding back my position [on providing an NOC to the Pakistani players to participate in the T10] until I am fully satisfied with specifics on whose money is fuelling this league," ESPNcricinfo.com quoted Mani, as saying.

"In fact, I have asked the ICC for reassurance because they have sanctioned it and I need it in writing that they are totally satisfied that this league has no such element that can bring Pakistan players into dispute. Unfortunately, [our players] get trapped [into sinister machinations often] so my top priority is to protect my players as, for us, reputation of Pakistan is far more important," he added.

Questioning the rationale behind the T10 league, the chairman asserted that he would make sure that all the leagues, in which Pakistani players are participating, are re-examined to find out if they are credible or not.

"I don't understand the rationale behind that. On what basis did [the board] commit Pakistan [players to the T10 League]? I think the only criteria that was considered was how much money the PCB and the players will get. The players' workload wasn't taken into account," he said.

"All the leagues that Pakistani players participate in, I am getting them re-examined. Whichever league our players are involved in, we need to find out with due diligence who are running the leagues and whether they are really credible. This wasn't done before [with regards to the T10 League] as there is not a single piece paper that can tell me who are these people are behind the T10 League," he added.

The T10 league is the first internationally-approved ten-over tournament which got the official sanction from the ICC on August 2018. The league, which made its debut in 2017, was introduced by private cricket organizers in Sharjah.