PCB urges BCCI to favor DRS

MARIA SAEED

 

KARACHI: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Zaka Ashraf has urged the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to reconsider their stance on the Decision Review System (DRS).

 

Ashraf told the media here that the DRS was a constructive step forward and India should also review its policy on the implementation of the system. “I feel accepting the DRS system will be in the larger interest of the sport,” he said.

 

Earlier, the International Cricket Council (ICC), in its recent meetings in Kuala Lampur decided that it would continue with the current arrangement of DRS where the two competing countries in a bi-lateral series will decide on the use of the technology. The ICC in its meetings did not make the DRS mandatory for all Test matches.

 

Since the decisions taken under the DRS have helped umpires, players and the game, Ashraf insists on the use of the DRS. "It is a system which is also beneficial for umpires in the long run," Ashraf said.

 

Pakistan has been a staunch supporter of the DRS and is presently trying to acquire sponsorship for using it in the One-day Internationals (ODIs) scheduled against Australia in the UAE next month.

 

Ashraf also spoke about PCB plans to hold its premier league tournament and said that it was trying to launch the event in November. 

 

Ashraf was here to meet the Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah to discuss construction and development work on the new stadium in Gharhi Khuda Baksh, homeplace of the Bhutto family.