Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) proposed a four-team annual series that can generate revenue up to $650m per year. The proposal includes Pakistan, India, Australia, and England who will play a single-league T20I tournament every year and the concept will be presented officially at the ICC Board meeting next week in Dubai.
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) proposed a four-team annual series that can generate revenue up to $650m per year, according to the estimation of the board, which is approximately PKR 11,895 crores.
The proposal includes Pakistan, India, Australia, and England who will play a single-league T20I tournament every year and the concept will be presented officially at the ICC Board meeting next week in Dubai.
The PCB has proposed a window for the event in September-October that could prove ideal as it is the beginning of the cricket season for Pakistan, India, and Australia and the end of the season for England.
The format is planned to be played as a single-league tournament structured as six league games, concluded by either one-off or best-of-three finals, played in two weeks.
As far as the hosting rights are concerned, they will be moving on a rotational basis, with ICC taking full control of the event.
The estimation made by PCB suggests that the event can bring $650m of revenue through media and commercial rights and the money would be distributed among the four sides and the ICC members.
The distribution share of the venue is not confirmed yet. Still, the thought has been passed that the majority of funds can go to the non-participating Full Members and Associate members for their development.
“This is a strategic paper in which the ICC and its members have been encouraged and invited to explore an untapped event opportunity around traditional rivalries in cricket, turn them into a cricket extravaganza, attract a new generation of cricketers, speed up cricket development and maximize revenues for the members,”
a PCB official familiar with the plan told ESPNcricinfo.
“This concept not only provides context; it will also become a much-anticipated event across the globe as cricket fans and followers want to see Pakistan play India or Australia take on England or India meet England or Pakistan face Australia on an annual basis,”
PCB official added.
PCB Chairman Ramiz Raja has mentioned this concept a lot of times since he took over the seat last year, but no details have been revealed yet. Ramiz will officially present the idea in Dubai next week alongside the board CEO Faisal Hasnain.
The meeting also holds great value for shaping the next Future Tour Programme (FTP).
The response from the other participants has not been aired yet and it will be good for Pakistan and Indian cricket as both countries haven’t played a bilateral series since 2012-23 due to political tensions in the region. Since then, they have been facing each other in the ICC events.
The chances of acceptance of the proposal are rare as the ICC calendar is full of events for the upcoming years. There are four men’s T20 World Cups between 2023 and 2031 and the domestic T20 leagues with most Full Members are now running, which means that space in the calendar is non-existent – unless some of the bilateral commitments are sacrificed.
PCB also added that the purpose of this proposal is not to devalue the ICC events but to add a short event that has future a handsome commercial value.
“The ICC tried the ICC Super Series in 2005, so there is no harm in testing waters for another event,”
a PCB official said.
“This event will also bring another nation vs nation event in a cricket calendar that is increasingly influenced by the mushrooming of various T20 leagues worldwide. Because of that, bilateral T20Is have become meaningless. The four-nation Super Series can fill the vacuum,”
PCB official concluded.
