By IANS
Karachi : The Pakistan cricket team will be richer by a whopping Rs.450 million if it win the inaugural Twenty20 World Championships.
Quoting reliable sources, The News reported Thursday that “the cash-rich Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) will shower its players with huge win bonuses if they win the Twenty20 title. In addition, the players will also receive cash rewards from a few big business houses which sponsor cricket in Pakistan”.
“The cricketers will also get handsome rewards from the government as President Pervez Musharraf, the board’s chief patron, is keenly following the 12-nation spectacle in South Africa and is known for his generosity when it comes to rewarding Pakistani sportsmen winning laurels at the international arena,” it added.
Thus, each of the 15 players in the Pakistani squad will get up to Rs.30 million if the team wins the Twenty20 title. This will be in addition to the winners’ cheque of $490,000 out of the total $1.9 million prize money at stake in the tournament.
“Such a financial bonanza for the Pakistani players will be in complete contrast to the drought they suffered after an embarrassing World Cup exit in the Caribbean this March,” The News noted.
Pakistan tumbled out of the World Cup after back-to-back defeats against the West Indies and tournament underdogs Ireland “and each of the players in the 15-man squad collected just a few hundred dollars in prize money”, the newspaper said.
Pakistan stormed into the Twenty20 semi-finals Tuesday after overpowering title-favourites Australia by six wickets in a Group F match in Johannesburg. The win followed an impressive triumph over Sri Lanka a day earlier.