{"id":474399,"date":"2026-02-12T05:20:09","date_gmt":"2026-02-12T05:20:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/474399\/"},"modified":"2026-02-12T05:20:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-12T05:20:09","slug":"icc-under-bcci-influence-could-do-anything-saqlain-mushtaq-stirs-hornets-nest-with-pitch-allegation-before-india-game","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/474399\/","title":{"rendered":"ICC under BCCI influence could do anything: Saqlain Mushtaq stirs hornet\u2019s nest with pitch allegation before India game"},"content":{"rendered":"

Former Pakistan <\/a>spinner Saqlain Mushtaq<\/a> stirred a hornet\u2019s nest ahead of the India-Pakistan clash, alleging that the ICC could come \u201cunder BCCI influence\u201d and even tamper with the Premadasa pitch, which will host the marquee encounter in the 2026 T20 World Cup<\/a> on Sunday.<\/p>\n

\"SaqlainSaqlain Mushtaq alleged ICC may tweak Premadasa track under BCCI influence<\/p>\n

Under the hybrid model adopted for the tournament, Pakistan are playing all their matches in Sri Lanka. They have won both their opening Group A fixtures at the SSC Stadium in Colombo. However, the blockbuster showdown against India will be staged at the R Premadasa Stadium.<\/p>\n

After Pakistan\u2019s win over the USA earlier this week, a result that left them one victory away from sealing a second-round berth, Saqlain was asked on the Pakistani show Game on Hai whether he expected a similar surface in Colombo for the India clash. The veteran triggered controversy by suggesting that the ICC, under BCCI\u2019s influence, could alter the pitch conditions, potentially forcing Pakistan to rethink their playing XI.<\/p>\n

ALSO READ: \u2018Sanju Samson hasn\u2019t done anything\u2019: Srikkanth proposes out-of-the-box fix for Abhishek Sharma absence in Namibia clash<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cWith the kind of technology available today and the modern-day groundsmen, the pitch can change \u2014 you never know. We know under whose influence the ICC works,\u201d Saqlain said.<\/p>\n

The discussion then shifted to team selection, particularly the use of Faheem Ashraf, Pakistan\u2019s only fast-bowling all-rounder in the squad. Experts on the panel, including former pacer Umar Gul and ex-captain Mohammad Hafeez, questioned why Faheem had not bowled a single over in the first two matches.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ve given Usman Tariq a game, which gives him confidence ahead of India. But if you need two fast bowlers and an all-rounder going forward, the entire equation changes. Look at Jimmy Neesham he\u2019s like our Faheem Ashraf. Some days he bowls one over, some days he bowls the 20th. Who bowls the 20th over for Pakistan? Tariq? Nawaz? Shadab? Abrar? When have they last done it? Faheem has, whether good or bad,\u201d Saqlain argued.<\/p>\n

Gul and Hafeez echoed similar concerns, questioning Salman Agha\u2019s captaincy. They suggested that Faheem should have been utilised against the Netherlands and the USA to build confidence ahead of the high-pressure clash against India.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Former Pakistan spinner Saqlain Mushtaq stirred a hornet\u2019s nest ahead of the India-Pakistan clash, alleging that the ICC…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":474400,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[564],"tags":[64,63,12914,740,7301,7884,7880,19329,241868,85],"class_list":["post-474399","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cricket","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-bcci","tag-cricket","tag-icc","tag-ind-vs-pak","tag-india-vs-pakistan","tag-indian-cricket-team","tag-saqlain-mushtaq","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/474399","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=474399"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/474399\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/474400"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=474399"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=474399"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=474399"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}