New Delhi, February 7 The ICC has sought an explanation from Pakistan on how the 'Force Majeure' clause can be invoked to justify the team's refusal to play the T20 World Cup match against India after the PCB tried to wriggle out of the situation by putting the onus on its government.
However, there is now a glimmer of hope as the PCB has approached the ICC for discussions, according to an ICC Director who believes that the marquee clash on February 15 will eventually take place. "The talks have started," he said.
The ICC has asked the Pakistan Cricket Board to justify withdrawing from one match while playing the remaining tournament on government instructions.
A few days ago, the PCB had officially written to the ICC about wanting to invoke the 'Force Majeure' clause, citing the government's tweet banning the team from the February 15 clash in Colombo as the reason.
Having received the formal communication from the world body, the PCB initiated further discussions.
The ICC is currently engaging with the board in a structured manner to explore possible resolutions, with a view that the interest of the game must supersede unilateral action.
So what is Force Majeure?
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Force majeure is a contractual provision that excuses a party from fulfilling its obligations due to extraordinary events beyond its control, such as war, natural disasters, government actions, or public emergencies.
For the clause to apply, the affected party must demonstrate that the event was unforeseeable, unavoidable, and that it took all reasonable steps to mitigate the impact. Mere inconvenience or political preference does not ordinarily satisfy this test.
ICC seeks proof of mitigation
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The Pakistan government had announced that its team would boycott only the India fixture to support Bangladesh, who were shown the door for refusing to play in India due to their "security concerns". They will play the remaining matches. The ICC has sent across a series of queries, asking the PCB to demonstrate what efforts it made to mitigate the situation, explore alternatives, or seek exemptions before opting for non-participation. It is learnt that the global body also set out the conditions under which force majeure can legitimately be triggered, the evidence required for withdrawal from a scheduled match, and the wider sporting, commercial, and governance consequences of such a step. The ICC has also underlined the damages it could potentially claim if the invocation is found invalid. In its reply, the ICC has pointed out that selective participation strikes at the core premise of a global tournament and could expose the PCB to breach-of-contract claims as well as disciplinary action under ICC regulations.
PCB engaged in structured dialogue
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According to sources in the ICC, the global body has followed the same process that it followed with Bangladesh, which was also engaged for extensive deliberations for several days.