LONDON // The hopes of the UAE playing hosts to a number of World Cup matches next year took a blow when talks at Lord's in London between the International Cricket Council (ICC) and the three co-hosts broke down yesterday. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) wanted Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and India to support them in a bid to hold their share of 14 limited-overs World Cup matches "under the aegis of the PCB in a safe neutral venue".
"I had hoped and expected the support of my Asian co-hosts in resolving these organisational difficulties," said PCB chairman Ijaz Butt. On Friday it looked as though some headway had been made into the deadlock and more talks would continue. However, the PCB, who had insisted that they host their matches in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, released a statement yesterday saying: "There was no major breakthrough in the talks held on Friday and we are disappointed with the breakdown in talks today [Saturday] which means that organisational issues surrounding the 2011 World Cup remain unresolved and that the legal proceedings the PCB brought against the ICC in Dubai and in Lahore will continue."
* With agencies