Fans deprived of live telecast of Quaid-i-Azam Trophy final

KARACHI, Jan 19: The final of the Quaid-i-Azam Trophy will not be telecast live after a row broke out between Pakistan Television Corporation (PTV) and the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) here on Friday.

PTV, who had made arrangements for a live coverage from the National Stadium, were unhappy over the PCB's selection of a pitch, situated on the far side of the square. Usually, the matches which are telecast are played on either of the three strips in the centre of the square.

However, the match pitch for the final is three strips away to the right from the centre of the square if viewed from the pavilion end.

A PTV spokesman explained the cameras are placed atop the pavilion and the scoreboard so that they are positioned straight over the pitch to cover the angle right behind the bowler's arm from both ends. The PCB refused to budge to PTV's request to play the final on another strip that is next to the one on which the Test between Pakistan and England was played last month.

A PCB official that it was decided five days ago to play the match on the current pitch and there was no question of making a last minute switch. "If the PTV had wanted to televise the final, they should have contacted us well in advance and not hours before the start of the match," PCB director Brig Munawwar Rana said from Lahore.

The real losers of this unnecessary confrontation are the cricket fans as both teams are fielding some of the best talent available in the country.