The ICC is unlikely to take action on the Pakistan Cricket Board’s complaint over alleged crowd behavior during their World Cup match against India in Ahmedabad, as the scope of the anti-discrimination code is limited to individuals and does not cover groups . More than one lakh fans watched the action at the Narendra Modi Stadium and only three Pakistani-American fans were in the stands to support the players from the neighboring country.
A section of fans had heckled Mohammad Rizwan with religious chants as the wicketkeeper-batsman was walking back to the pavilion after his dismissal, prompting the PCB to file a complaint with the game’s governing body.
Pakistan’s director of cricket, Mickey Arthur, had admitted that his players were impressed by the rowdy crowd during their seven-wicket thumping of India.
It is understood that ICC has taken note of the complaint and is determining its nature and the process it could follow.
“The ICC takes every complaint very seriously, but the code is about individuals. I don’t know what exactly PCB is looking at, but it will be very difficult to take tangible action,” said a senior official, who has worked at both BCCI and the ICC worked. told PTI on condition of anonymity.
PCB’s complaint of “inappropriate conduct” should be viewed in relative light.
“The ICC can identify individuals when there are allegations of racism, but when thousands of people are shouting a slogan, what can you do? No player was injured by a ‘missile’ hurled from the gallery? A partisan crowd is expected. top sport,” he added.
As part of standard protocol, the ICC announces its position on racism and zero-tolerance policies through billboards during its events.
A recent example of collective racism in sport is the case of Brazilian football international Vinicius Junior, when he threatened to walk off the pitch in the second half of a La Liga match between Real Madrid and Valencia last season after being targeted of racist comments.
Calling it a case of collective racist chants, football’s governing body had ordered the partial closure of a stand at Valencia’s home Mestalla Stadium for five matches and fined the club 45,000 euros.
The sanction was later reduced to three matches with partial closure and a fine of 27,000 euros after the club appealed the decision. Seven people were identified and detained by Spanish police and banned from entering any stadium in Spain for three years.
On Arthur’s ‘Dil Dil Pakistan’ not blaring from the sound system, a BCCI official said, “There was no problem with playing ‘Dil Dil Pakistan’ but was there one such moment in that entire match when you heard that song could have played?”
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