Dubai [UAE], September 20 : Amid the handshake row and ongoing friction with ICC match referee Andy Pycroft, PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi dropped in at Pakistan's training session, met with players and conferred at length with white-ball head coach Mike Hesson before their highly-anticipated Super Fours fixture against arch-rival India at the Asia Cup in Dubai on Sunday.
Naqvi, who is also the chair of the Asian Cricket Council, dropped in at the training session on Saturday evening and had a brief chat with the players at the ICC Academy. He then went on to meet Hesson and had an intense conversation with the former New Zealand cricketer. Naqvi was animated throughout their conversation and even appeared to be emphasising specific points with his gesture.
The PCB chairman's visit comes in the aftermath of Pakistan cancelling its pre-match press conference ahead of their Super Fours game against India, continuing a trend evident during their previous fixture against the UAE. A Pakistan player or member of the coaching staff was scheduled to do a press conference at 6 pm (local time) on Saturday.
Pakistan's reason behind cancelling the presser remains unclear. It is the second instance in as many games that Pakistan have scrapped the customary pre-match duties. Pakistan refused to hold a press conference ahead of their must-win game against the UAE earlier this week, as the handshake row with match referee Andy Pycroft raged on.
The development comes in the aftermath of Andy Pycroft, who was at the heart of the handshake imbroglio when India and Pakistan locked horns on September 14 at the Asia Cup, being appointed the match referee for the Super Four fixture between the two teams in Dubai.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had sought Pycroft's immediate removal in the aftermath of their landslide 7-wicket defeat against India. According to the Pakistan board, Pycroft had asked the captains, Salman Agha and Suryakumar Yadav, not to shake hands during the toss of their group stage encounter.
The situation intensified after the International Cricket Council (ICC) didn't entertain PCB's plea, and the former Zimbabwe cricketer stayed. However, the row spilt over into Pakistan's must-win game against the UAE. After cancelling the pre-match press conference, Pakistan arrived late at the Dubai International Stadium and forced the game to be delayed by an hour. Pakistan players were asked to stay at the hotel while PCB officials engaged in backroom talks with the ICC.
Moments before Pakistan's toss against the UAE, Pakistan team management met Pycroft, which snowballed into another controversy. A muted video of the meeting was shared by PCB on social media, which was met with heavy backlash. According to sources, Pakistan's decision prompted the ICC to take action against them. It is under the tension-laden backdrop that the two teams will square off at the same venue once again.
Pakistan squad for Asia Cup: Salman Ali Agha (c), Abrar Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Hasan Nawaz, Hussain Talat, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Waseem Jnr, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Salman Mirza, Shaheen Afridi, Sufyan Moqim.
India squad for Asia Cup: Suryakumar Yadav (c), Shubman Gill, Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Jitesh Sharma, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Sanju Samson, Harshit Rana, Rinku Singh.