“We Owe It to Jay Shah”: UAE Official as ECB Refuses To Host PSL Matches

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) postponed the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2025 indefinitely, hours after announcing that the remaining matches would be relocated to the UAE due to escalating tensions between India and Pakistan following the 22 April Pahalgam terror attack in Kashmir, which killed 26 people. Although the PCB cited advice from Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in its statement, the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) reportedly declined the PCB’s request to host the remaining eight matches in Dubai, citing security concerns and the risk of straining ties with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

According to a Cricbuzz report, the ECB rejected the PCB’s request to relocate PSL 2025 matches to the UAE following a nudge from Indian cricket authorities, including former BCCI president and current International Cricket Council (ICC) chairman Jay Shah.

The report highlighted the close relationship between the BCCI and ECB, forged during the COVID-19 pandemic when the UAE hosted one-and-a-half seasons of the Indian Premier League (IPL) and the 2021 T20 World Cup.

“We owe it to the BCCI and Jay Bhai,” an ECB official told Cricbuzz, acknowledging the influence of the BCCI and its former president, Jay Shah, in the decision to reject the PCB’s request to host PSL 2025 matches in the UAE.

While the BCCI has the financial resources to stage the IPL outside India, as demonstrated during the COVID-19 pandemic, the PCB lacks similar capabilities. As a result, the future of the PSL remains uncertain.

PCB’s Response

On Friday, 9 May 2025, the PCB postponed the PSL 2025, citing escalating India–Pakistan tensions as the reason.

“The Pakistan Cricket Board announces the postponement of the remaining eight matches of the HBL PSL X. The last 24 hours have seen a worsening of the situation on the LoC, increased incursion of 78 drones and the firing of surface-to-surface missiles from India,” the PCB’s official statement read.

“The decision to postpone has been taken pursuant to advice received from Prime Minister Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif,” it added.

The PCB acknowledged that players were reluctant to continue participating in PSL 2025 due to the escalating situation in Pakistan.

“We, at the PCB, also have sincere regard for the mental well-being of participating players and the sentiments of our foreign players, and we respect the concerns of their families who want to see them back home,” the PCB’s statement concluded.