New Delhi: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Ramiz Raja, earlier in January, had talked about a four-nation T20 tournament, a 'T20 Super Series' to be played every year, in which apart from India and Pakistan, Australia and England would also feature.
Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Jay Shah has finally spoken about Ramiz Raja's proposal, calling it a 'short-term commercial initiative'.
Speaking to news agency Reuters, Jay Shah said that the interest of the heads of cricket bodies around the world should be on the expansion of the game of cricket. Shah also said that his aim is to see cricket being included in the Olympics.
"With the IPL window expanding and the ICC (global) events every year in the cycle, our primary responsibility is to safeguard bilateral cricket at home, with emphasis on test cricket.
"I am also looking forward to seeing cricket at the Olympics, as that will help the game grow. Expansion of the sport is a challenge that our game faces and we must prioritise it over any short-term commercial initiative," Shah told Reuters.
Shah also said that BCCI is doing its best to start a Women's IPL very soon. "I want to assure you that BCCI is not only sincere but is taking all necessary steps to start a full-fledged women's league similar to the IPL soon," Shah added.
Earlier in January, Rameez Raja had said that he would propose a 4-nation tournament to the ICC and that profits from such tournaments should be shared on a percentage basis with all ICC members.
He also said that more and more cricket should be played between India and Pakistan, because the bilateral series between the two countries has been closed for almost a decade and both the countries face each other only in events like ICC or Asia Cup.