Former England captain Michael Atherton has alleged that the International Cricket Council (ICC) is deliberately structuring major tournaments to consistently pit Pakistan and India against one another.
Atherton’s comments follow the friction and disputes that emerged during last month’s Asia Cup, which featured three matches between the two rivals, culminating in the final. The tournament witnessed on-field altercations, unsporting behavior from players of both nations, and a notable instance where Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav declined to shake hands with Pakistan’s Salman Agha.
The discord was not confined to the men’s game, as the captains of the women’s teams, Fatima Sana of Pakistan and Harmanpreet Kaur of India, also omitted the traditional post-match handshake after their ODI encounter in Colombo on Sunday.
In his column for The Times (UK), Atherton conceded that the ICC’s practice of scheduling India-Pakistan games in world tournaments is driven by significant commercial and diplomatic incentives. The two teams have been drawn in the same group in all 11 ICC events held since 2013.
“The match, despite its infrequency—or possibly because of it—wields enormous economic influence,” Atherton wrote. “It is a primary factor behind the high valuation of ICC tournament broadcasting rights, which are worth approximately $3 billion for the 2023-27 period,” he added.
He further explained that as the financial appeal of bilateral series diminishes, ICC events have gained greater significance, thereby making the India-Pakistan encounter a pivotal element for broadcasters and other financial stakeholders.
However, the former English skipper contended that the contest has now transformed into a stage for political and emotional demonstrations rather than a purely sporting rivalry.
“If cricket once served as a tool for diplomacy, it has now unmistakably become a substitute for wider geopolitical strains and a means of propaganda,” Atherton asserted.
“There is scant justification for a major sport to engineer tournament fixtures solely for monetary gain. Considering how the rivalry is currently being leveraged, there is even less rationale to perpetuate this approach,” he argued.
The 57-year-old concluded by calling upon the ICC to guarantee an open and verifiable process for all future tournament draws.
“For the upcoming broadcast rights cycle, the fixture draw must be conducted with transparency. If that results in India and Pakistan not facing off every time, then that is an outcome that should be accepted.”
