UAE set to decline PCB request to host PSL games

Vartha Bharati | 09-05-2025 | 18:58:00 IST

Representational Image | PC: AFP

Dubai, May 9 (PTI): The PCB's plans to conduct the remaining Pakistan Super League matches in the UAE may not succeed as the Emirates Cricket Board is "unlikely to approve" its request due to the border tensions between India and Pakistan.

A source close to the developments in the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) has indicated that the Board is set to reject the request from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), which has already announced that the PSL would be held in the UAE.

The source has cited "security concerns potentially emanating from the rising tension between India and Pakistan."

It is learnt that the recent developments have made the Emirates Cricket Board "vary of being perceived as an ally of PCB", which it believes the act of hosting the PSL may suggest.

"The Emirates Cricket Board has enjoyed a strong relationship with BCCI in recent years having hosted the 'India' edition of the ICC T20 World Cup 2021, editions of the IPL as well as India matches during ICC Champions Trophy 2025," the source further stated.

Dubai is also the headquarter of the International Cricket Council, which is currently headed by former BCCI secretary Jay Shah.

"The UAE has a diverse South Asian population which enjoys cricket. Hosting a tournament like the PSL in the midst of such tense circumstances could vitiate harmony, pose security risks and stir unnecessary friction between communities," the source said.

The PCB said early this morning that the last eight PSL fixtures, which were previously scheduled in Rawalpindi, Multan and Lahore, will now be staged in the UAE.

Schedule of matches, outlining the dates and venues, will be shared in due course, a statement said.

On Thursday, the PCB called off a scheduled match between Peshawar Zalmi and Karachi Kings at the Rawalpindi stadium.

India launched missile attacks on terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan Occupied Jammu and Kashmir a fortnight after the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack in which 26 people were killed.

Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.

Olympic hockey bronze medallist and sports icon Dr Vece Paes passes away

14-08-2025 ¦ 14-08-2025 IST

Image Credit: NDTV

Kolkata (PTI): Dr. Vece Paes, a member of the 1972 Munich Olympic Games bronze-winning Indian hockey team and father of legendary tennis player Leander Paes, died here on Thursday morning. He was 80 years old.

Paes, who was suffering from advanced stage of Parkinson's disease, was admitted to a city hospital on Tuesday morning.

Paes, who donned multiple hats in his long association with Indian sports, was a midfielder in the Indian hockey team. He also played several sports such as football, cricket and rugby and served as the president of the Indian Rugby Football Union from 1996 to 2002.

A sports medicine doctor, he worked as a medical consultant with several sports bodies including the Asian Cricket Council, the Board of Control for Cricket in India and the Indian Davis Cup team.