By IANS
Karachi : Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) officials are confident that they would confirm a five-match one-day series at home against Sri Lanka later this week despite money being a problem.
According to The News, a PCB official told the paper that the Sri Lankan cricket officials have given positive vibes over a Pakistani proposal for a One-Day International (ODI) series but added that there is a ‘slight’ disagreement on the ‘fees’ involved in such a venture.
Pakistan has asked the Sri Lankans to send their team here for a one-day series in April-May in a bid to fill the void for the Australians, who backed out of their tour citing security concerns.
Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), the governing body of the game in the country, initially turned down the proposal, saying the team was too busy with its international schedule. But after a renewed offer from the PCB earlier this month, it agreed to reconsider the proposal.
The issue is expected to be settled on the sidelines of an Asian Cricket Council (ACC) meeting to be held in Lahore later this week.
SLC chairman Arjuna Ranatunga is to attend the ACC development meeting as the panel’s current chief. PCB officials are planning to use his visit to confirm the ODI series against Sri Lanka.
According to the PCB officials, the only hitch in the series going ahead is that the Sri Lankans are asking for more money than the Pakistani board is willing to dish out for the brief tour.
The official pointed out that since it will not be a part of the ICC Future Tour Programme (FTP), the PCB would have to pay the Sri Lankans appearance money to play the series.
According to ICC rules, a host country has to pay $150,000 to a touring team for a single one-dayer. That means that the PCB has to pay $750,000 for a five-match series.
According to the official, the PCB has no problems in paying that sum, but Sri Lanka are asking for more.
They want Pakistan also to take care of the fees paid to their players. For a single match, the fees paid to the players come down to about $40,000-50,000. According to a rough estimate, the PCB, if it agrees to Sri Lanka’s demands, will have to pay a total of a little less than a million dollars for the series.
The PCB official, however, appeared hopeful that Ranatunga would accept the ODI proposal without insisting on the extra expense of around $250,000. The PCB is hoping that the Sri Lankans will arrive here soon after Bangladesh finish playing in Pakistan.
The Sri Lankans are currently in the Caribbean and are scheduled to end that tour on April 17. “We believe that if the series (against Sri Lanka) is confirmed, it will begin in the last week of April,” said the PCB official.