ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has barred its cricketers from competing in the Indian Premier League Twenty20 tournament in the wake of last year’s terrorist attacks in Mumbai.
“We were informed by the Foreign Ministry today that the situation is not conducive for Pakistan cricketers to travel to India,” Sports Minister Aftab Jilani told The Associated Press yesterday.
Jilani last week gave a no-objection certificate (NOC) allowing Pakistani players to compete in the IPL.
Five Pakistani cricketers — Yasir Hameed, Yasir Arafat, Asim Kamal, Danish Kaneria and Mohammad Hafeez — were due to appear in the IPL player auction at the Indian state of Goa on Feb. 10.
“We (the Sports Ministry) had given the NOC, but the final decision was up to the government,” Jilani said.
The minister said that one of the reasons given by the Pakistan Foreign Ministry for the ban was that relations between the countries have been strained in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks in Mumbai. “Ever since these attacks, the situation has got tense and even Pakistani artists are facing problems in India,” Jilani said.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said it would inform the IPL of the decision. “The ministry (of sports) today informed us through an e-mail that no Pakistani player can compete in the IPL,” PCB chief operating officer Salim Altaf said.
Salman Butt, Shahid Afridi, Shoaib Malik, Younis Khan and Shoaib Akhtar were among the 11 Pakistani players who represented various franchises in the IPL last year.
“The IPL had asked us last month to inform them of the status of Pakistan players and now we will tell them that our players can’t compete,” Altaf said.
