Fawad Chaudhry, Pakistan’s Minister of Information and Broadcasting, announced on Tuesday that due to a license dispute with Indian broadcasters, Pakistan’s next England tour would not be televised in the nation.
The series kicks off on July 8 with an ODI at Sophia Gardens in Cardiff.
PTV’s proposal for a contract with Indian broadcasters Star and Asia — who hold the rights to broadcast the matches — was turned down, according to the minister, who spoke at a news conference in Islamabad.
“Indian firms own the rights to broadcast matches throughout South Asia,” he explained, “and we cannot do business with any Indian firm.”
Pakistan’s information minister said the government will approach the England Cricket Board to attempt to reach an agreement, adding that the nation would not conduct business with India unless New Delhi reversed its August 5 decision, which abolished occupied Kashmir’s special status.
“Normalization of relations with India is conditional on it reversing the August 5 decision,” he added.
According to the information minister, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and Pakistan Television (PTV) would suffer significant losses as a result of this.