Why Pakistan feels betrayed by England and New Zealand

No bullet was fired, there was no ambush, no rocket launchers nor grenades were thrown at a bus. Not even a cracker blast, never mind a terrorist attack. Yet the sound of New Zealand and England’s withdrawal has been deafening for Pakistan cricket. A country that spent nearly a decade in isolation and had just worked its way back to normalcy has suddenly found itself shut out once again, confidence around its security all but annihilated. Pakistan cricket has once more been forced to build from scratch. Minutes before their opening one-day international (ODI), New Zealand unilaterally pulled the plug, deciding to fly back citing a threat to the NZ team. England were next. They were due next month — after 16 years — but have withdrawn from the tour, citing “increasing concerns about travelling to the region." West Indies and Australia are due next and naturally, clouds invariably hover both those series, too.The 24 strong BLACKCAPS touring squad have arrived home into Auckland from Dubai and will shortly begin the mandato… https://t.co/GeDj7BT3t4— BLACKCAPS (@BLACKCAPS) 1632269564000Body blowPakistan has taken it hard. The whole country was overwhelmed following departure of the New Zealanders, many viewing it as a betrayal. In the past 18 months, Pakistan has toured England twice, both times helping bail the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) out of a financial crisis. 86418554 They travelled to New Zealand too, to make sure cricket in that country kept moving ahead. To Pakistani eyes, when the time has come to reciprocate those tours, both these nations chose to abandon Pakistan. These decisions can have a damaging effect on not just Pakistani cricket but on the country itself. It can send out negative perceptions about travel to Pakistan. The impact of these two withdrawals will force Pakistan back into its cocoon, once again dealing with a toll that is as much psychological as it is financial. Pakistan’s exile has been a cruel one, one which they were just emerging out of following the aftermath of the fateful 2009 attack on the Sri Lanka team bus. mediumCompletely isolated from hosting international cricket at home, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) was forced to play its home international fixtures outside the country. The United Arab Emirates became their second home and remained a fortress for 10 years; 135 international games featuring Pakistan were played from 2009 till 2018. The country’s domestic cricket, despite internal problems, and regular structural changes in the PCB, kept producing talent. There was however a grassroots gap, with the developmental phase of players curtailed by not having enough quality matches at home. It was no surprise that the age group players from the Under-19 circuit struggled to compete internationally.Home in exilePakistan stayed relevant for world cricket. For nine straight years (2009-18), at least three-dozen players made their national debut outside Pakistan, spending the major chunk of their careers in exile without playing international cricket at home. Among the most prominent names are Junaid Khan (107 international games), Rahat Ali (35) and Zulfiqar Babar (27). Players were often picked directly to the national team without getting any exposure to the world at a junior or A-team level. Performances on away tours fluctuated but cricket lived through the decade-long exile, during which the system kept on producing the likes of Babar Azam, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Afridi, Fakhar Zaman, Harris Rauf out of nowhere.Pakistan might have continued to play cricket that way but the impact at home was visible and damaging. A whole generation was growing in oblivion; the charm of playing in front of their home crowd was missing, the popularity of players dropping, the big fat cricket sponsorships keeping away as brands felt they were not getting leverage in the local market. The stadiums were deserted, and infrastructure spending was cut, the PCB pragmatically opting to spend that money hosting teams at off-shore venues. medium86419054Given that costs were going to be high, they booked two series each against England and Australia. Bangladesh and Zimbabwe were largely overlooked because playing them off-shore meant losses Pakistan could not afford. When Zimbabwe toured Pakistan in 2020, they became the first team to come to Lahore, but a suicide blast during the series outside the third layer of security near Gaddafi Stadium marred the series. Pakistan did showcase their ability to host the series with extremely heavy security, and the series against Zimbabwe was completed. But the blast wiped out Pakistan’s case to convince more teams to tour and the administrators had to return to the drawing board. What is remarkable is that the financial health of PCB just about held firm. They were already missing out playing India — a powerhouse in world cricket — as bilateral ties between the two countries were effectively snapped after the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.Riding the T20 wagonBy not playing India in the International Cricket Council Future Tours Programme (ICC FTP) cycle since 2015, the PCB lost up to $80 million in terms of broadcasting and other commercial deals. Enter the Pakistan Super League (PSL), planned in 2015 and launched in 2016, the franchise based T20 league which was built to serve the cricket-starved nation and generate a revenue stream for the board. medium86418658The league’s principle purpose was to get as many foreign players interacting with a new generation of cricketers who grew up in isolation, with the ultimate goal being to use the PSL as a tool to change perceptions about Pakistan. In going through with the PSL, the PCB engaged European embassies in Pakistan, Asian cricket boards and hired Reg Dickason — a renowned international security and risk consultant.The lobbying began to pay off after a year of extensive efforts, with the PCB playing the PSL final in Lahore in 2017, followed by the ICC sanctioned World XI tour to Pakistan, which finally broke the ice. The PSL continued to grow with every season; part of it was played in UAE for a few seasons and then eventually brought back to Pakistan once and for all with all overseas players. The league breathed new life into player development, pumping in money and drastically changing players' professional careers; every year the PCB increased the player contract fee to make sure talent remained committed to cricket with rising pay scales. The sort of money used to bring teams back to Pakistan could have easily bankrupted the PCB, but the dream of cricket returning home has kept everyone invested. There is a famous slogan widely accepted in the country – “Tum jeeto ya haro hamey tum say pyaar hai” (win or loss we still love you). medium86419191A long chase aheadBringing cricket back home was never going to be a smooth ride. It arrived in small steps and till 2019 there was a sense of normalcy as every format of the game returned to Pakistan. South Africa, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, West Indies had successful tours. But the revival of cricket in the country wouldn’t truly be back until one of the “Western bloc”, as newly elected chairman Ramiz Raja put it, came to tour. medium86418973No matter the agreements at hand, local media and the PCB itself was always sceptical about New Zealand, England and Australia, and while the handshakes over the agreements were warm, Pakistani fingers were crossed behind their back. Now all those fears have proved well-founded. The abrupt pull out first by New Zealand and then England in space of three days has dented Pakistan harder than ever. It opened up wounds and will keep Pakistan cricket bleeding for some time again. Ramiz Raja may have raged at England and New Zealand for now, but deep down will know full well it is he who must solve a problem they have saddled him with.Untitled Carousel 86010319