PCB threaten to move out of ACC if it is not allowed to host 4 first round games of Asia Cup
Karachi(PTI): In a desperate bid to host some matches of the Asia Cup in Pakistan, the PCB is now trying to convince the Asian Cricket Council to allocate just four first round games in Pakistan or else they would have no option but to pull-out of continental body.
PCB chairman Najam Srthi's 'Hybrid Model' of Pakistan playing its home games apart from India encounter, in their own country, has been rejected by other member nations. PCB, in turn, has rejected the idea of hosting Asia Cup games in Sri Lanka.
"Yes, Najam Sethi as part of the plan B of the hybrid model proposed by us for the Asia Cup has informed the ACC this week in Dubai that PCB would be satisfied hosting four games at home," a reliable source close to the cricket board said.
He said Sethi had also conveyed to the ACC in Dubai that if even this plan B of the PCB was rejected by ACC members then Pakistan would neither play in the Asia Cup and also withdraw from the Asian Cricket Council.
Sethi, according to the source, has proposed a Pakistan versus Nepal match and Afghanistan versus Bangladesh, Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka and Sri Lanka v Bangladesh matches in Pakistan.
The source also added that Sethi had told the ACC officials that PCB would be happy playing most of its remaining matches in Dubai and the tournament's majority games can be held in Dubai including the final.
"The one challenge now facing the ACC and us as hosts is that Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and India are insisting the event shouldn't be held in UAE in September as the weather is very hot," the source said.
"In the recent past, BCCI has organized the entire (half) of IPL in UAE between September and November (in 2021) while the last two Asia Cups have also been held in UAE during the same period," the PCB source reminded.
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Laurene Powell Jobs faces health issues at Maha Kumbh, recovering after 'Ganga snan'
Mahakumbh Nagar (PTI): Overwhelmed by the huge crowds at the Maha Kumbh, Laurene Powell Jobs, the widow of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, was briefly indisposed but is recovering after 'Ganga snan' and rest.
Her enthusiasm to learn about Sanatan Dharma remains strong, according to a statement issued by the Uttar Pradesh government on Tuesday.
The billionaire businesswoman-philanthropist has been given a new name, 'Kamla', by her guru Mahamandaleshwar Swami Kailashanand Giri of the Niranjani Akhara.
"Laurene was briefly unwell on Monday but is feeling better after 'Ganga Snan' and rest. Her enthusiasm to delve deeper into Sanatan Dharma remains strong," the government statement quoted Swami Kailashanand as saying.
Swami Kailashanand told PTI Videos that she faced some health issues due to the crowds.
He described his newest disciple as a "simple, virtuous, and humble" woman with a keen interest in Sanatan Dharma. "She is free from ego and fully devoted to her guru," he said.
"All her questions revolve around Sanatan Dharma and she finds great joy and satisfaction in the answers," he added.
Mahant Ravindra Puri, chief of Panchayati Akhara Shri Niranjani, told PTI that Laurene's quest for spirituality brought her to the Maha Kumbh.
"She has a new name here, Kamla. She is very simple, soft and bereft of ego and is here as she was inspired by the timeless sanatani culture," said Puri, who is also the president of the Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad (ABAP), the apex body of 13 monastic Hindu orders.
"Her quest for spirituality brought her here. The way she has conducted herself in the akhara makes it clear that despite being among the world's richest and most famous, she is sans all ego and does not show-off. Here she dresses simply and conducts herself gracefully," he added.
Barring a few short video clips of her that were shared by news outlets last week, Laurene has largely avoided the media at the world's largest religious gathering so far.
In the video clips that were shared online on Saturday, she is seen dressed in a peach-yellow salwar suit with a saffron stole and a Rudraksha necklace around her neck.
"She maintains a low profile. The day before yesterday (on Sunday), I asked her to come and sit on the dais during an event but she remained seated at the back," Puri said.
"She has come here to witness our ageless and timeless sanatani culture, the core of all consciousness. She is also here to meet the sentinels of the sanatani faith, the saints and seers," he said.
Puri, who is also the president of the Mansa Devi Mandir Trust, Haridwar, said Laurene has come to the Kumbh for the first time.
Asked how long she will be staying her, Puri said, "She came to our place, Niranjani Akahra, on Sunday and would be staying here for a few days."
