Former England captain Michael Atherton has strongly called upon the International Cricket Council (ICC) to foster greater transparency in its tournament draw system, specifically suggesting a reduction in the number of India-Pakistan encounters. These pointed remarks come on the heels of several controversies that marred the 2025 Asia Cup.
India’s captain Suryakumar Yadav, left, and Pakistan’s captain Salman Agha stand (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
The recent men’s Asian tournament was notably influenced by political tensions, stemming from terror attacks and ongoing border conflicts between the two nations. Both the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) found themselves embroiled in these disputes.
For many years, India and Pakistan have consistently been placed in the same group at major ICC events. The ICC’s method for group selection has remained largely opaque, starkly contrasting with the transparent processes observed in other prominent sporting tournaments worldwide.
Reports suggest that the global cricket governing body deliberately ensures these two teams are in the same group to guarantee at least one India-Pakistan match per tournament. The Asia Cup format pushes this even further, often designed to allow for up to three such high-profile matches within a single month, as was evident in its most recent edition.
The Asian Cricket Council (ACC) heavily relies on the substantial revenue generated from these matches, using it to fund grassroots cricket development across the region. This financial dependency undeniably complicates any efforts to alter the current scheduling practices.
“Despite its scarcity (and perhaps, partly because of it), this fixture commands immense economic power. It’s one of the primary reasons why broadcast rights for ICC tournaments fetch such high values — approximately $3 billion for the current 2023-27 cycle,” Atherton elaborated in his column for The Times. “Given the diminishing value of bilateral matches, ICC events have surged in frequency and importance. Consequently, the India and Pakistan fixture has become indispensable to the financial health of those who might otherwise have little vested interest.”
Atherton further added, “If cricket once served as a tool for diplomacy, it has now, unequivocally, become a platform for broader political tensions and propaganda. There is, in any case, little justification for a serious sport to manipulate tournament fixtures purely for economic gain. Now that this rivalry is being exploited in other ways, the rationale becomes even weaker. For all future broadcast rights cycles, the fixture draws for ICC events must be fully transparent, and if that means the two teams don’t meet every time, then so be it.”
Indeed, the economic impact of these India-Pakistan matches is profound, especially for ICC tournaments. The colossal broadcasting rights fees, totaling around $3 billion for the 2023-27 cycle, underscore their commercial significance.
Recent developments during the Asia Cup have starkly highlighted the increasing entanglement of cricket and geopolitical dynamics between these countries. The tournament was rife with numerous controversies and provocative political statements from both sides, further fueling Atherton’s concerns.