India and Pakistan have played no bilateral cricket since 2012. The scarcity of contests, relationships between the two nations, and a mammoth population have led to high demand for India vs Pakistan matches.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) has cashed in on this opportunity. It’s believed that each game between the arch-rivals for the ongoing broadcast rights cycle for men’s ICC events from 2023 to 2027 is valued at $250 million (INR 2300 crore approximately).
But while the ICC thrives, cricket suffers in an India vs Pakistan match. Since they stopped playing bilateral cricket, Pakistan has beaten India just twice in ICC events. The game’s billed as the great rivalry, but there haven’t been hardly any close contests.
India vs Pakistan match all show no substance
An on-field rivalry doesn’t exist anymore. In both countries, politicians use the game for their own gain, and the public tries to one-up the other online. At some point, the interest will wane. At least, that’s what former PCB Chairman Tauqir Zia believes.
Pakistan’s cricket supremo from 1999 to 2003, Zia, believes all the hype for the India vs Pakistan match in the T20 World Cup 2026 was manufactured. All the buzz was created because the PCB first stated that they would boycott the game and then reversed it.
“The fact is, Pakistan and India matches have become too one-sided. This time, the hype and build-up were there because the PCB announced the boycott of the game against India, then un-boycotted it,” Zia was quoted as saying by PTI. “But sooner or later, the Pakistan and India games will lose their value to the ICC and member boards,” Zia added.
The move helped ICC. But how will the hype be recreated in the ODI World Cup 2027? Zia thinks sooner rather than later, the value for the India vs Pakistan match will go down. How will ICC continue to generate money then?
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