On October 3, Pakistan defeated Sri Lanka by 31 runs to begin their T20 World Cup 2024 campaign in Sharjah Cricket Stadium. But recently, there have been some financial issues surrounding the board’s payments to the athletes that have drawn attention. The players attended the major event anticipating the appropriate board approval after the matter grew over a period of more than four months.
They haven’t received payment since June 2024, and PCB hasn’t made any announcements regarding it yet. They made it clear in a statement that it’s a work in progress and promised to take immediate action once the lists are finished and authorised. They asserted, nevertheless, that there are too many events occurring at once, making it impossible for them to set a certain date.
Too much is happening, and there isn’t enough time to handle everything, Pakistan Cricket Board said in a statement to.
It’s still an ongoing project. Contracts will be made available with effect from July 1, 2024, as soon as the lists are complete and authorised.
Delays in money, no victory
On the pitch, however, their performance was unaffected by the outstanding salary. The Sana Fatima-led team showed up against Sri Lanka and won the match, despite their lacklustre performance in the warm-up matches. To assist the team reach 116 runs in the first innings, the skipper led from the front and scored 30 runs off of 20 deliveries. Nida Dar, a seasoned cricket player and former captain, hit 22 from 23 balls.
Although they were anticipated to chase it down, Sri Lanka’s batting unit fell short. After making six runs, Chamari Athapaththu left the field, and the wickets fell swiftly after. With 20 runs off of 34 balls, opener Vishmi Gunaratne placed the team behind the eight ball.
Also Read: Women’s T20 World Cup 2024: ICC launches AI tool to protect teams from toxic content
Even with Nilakshi de Silva’s 22 runs, it was insufficient. They lost the game because nine of Sri Lanka’s batters only managed single-digit scores. For Pakistan, Sadia Iqbal claimed three wickets.