Controversy erupts over PCB officials' absence at CT presentation ceremony
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Karachi (PTI): A controversy erupted on Sunday over the failure of the ICC to invite a Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) official on stage for the closing ceremony of the Champions Trophy in Dubai.
A source said that the PCB's chief executive officer Sumair Ahmed, who is also the director of the tournament, was present at the venue but was not invited for the ceremony.
"PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi didn't go to Dubai because of prior commitments as federal minister for interior but the PCB CEO was sent to represent Pakistan at the final and closing presentation," the source said.
He said for some reason or misunderstanding, the PCB official was not called on the podium, from where ICC chairman Jay Shah, BCCI president Roger Binny and secretary Devajit Saikia gave away the medals, trophies, and jackets to the players.
The source added that perhaps the CEO might not have been able to communicate properly to the ICC people responsible for organising the final ceremony and was left out.
Pakistan as hosts of the Champions Trophy, thus, didn't have any representative on the podium.
The PCB is expected to take up the matter with the ICC as to why its CEO was not invited on stage for the closing ceremony.
Meanwhile, former fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar also questioned the absence of PCB officials from the post-match presentation ceremony after the final of the tournament.
"India has won the Champions Trophy but I noticed there was no representative from the PCB after the final. Pakistan was hosting the Champions Trophy. I do not understand it," Akhtar said in a video posted on social 'X'.
"Why was nobody (from PCB) there to present the trophy? It is beyond me. It is something to think about. This is the world stage, you should have been here. Feeling very down to see that," Akhtar added.
BCCI president Binny presented the white jackets to India and the medals to match officials, while ICC chairman Shah handed the trophy to Rohit Sharma and gave the medals to the Indian players.
India had refused to play their matches in Pakistan citing security concerns. The PCB agreed to a hybrid model, allowing India to play their games in Dubai.
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SWR announces special trains for passengers stranded by large-scale IndiGo cancellations
Bengaluru (PTI): The South Western Railway on Saturday announced a series of special trains, in coordination with Central, South Eastern and Southern Railways, to clear stranded passengers following large-scale IndiGo flight cancellations across the country.
The special services will operate between December 6 and 10 on high-demand routes, including Bengaluru–Chennai, Bengaluru–Pune, Yesvantpur–Hazrat Nizamuddin, Shalimar–Yelahanka and Ernakulam–Yelahanka, officials said.
According to an official statement, SWR will run Train No. 06255/06256 between Chennai Egmore and KSR Bengaluru, 06257/06258 between Bengaluru and MGR Chennai Central, 06259/06260 between Yesvantpur and Hazrat Nizamuddin, and 06263/06264 between Bengaluru and Pune.
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Central Railway will operate Train No. 01413/01414 between Pune and Bengaluru, while South Eastern Railway will run Train No. 08073/08074 between Shalimar and Yelahanka. Southern Railway will operate Train No. 06147/06148 between Ernakulam and Yelahanka, the statement said.
Railways has advised passengers to check updated timings on its official channels and arrive early at stations.
For at least five days in a row, IndiGo flight operations have been significantly disrupted, with a large number of cancellations and delays causing hardships to thousands of passengers. In many cases, baggage has been misplaced.
