After more than a decade of wishing by thousands of Filipino expatriates in the Kingdom for the visit of PBA Legends, the dream will finally come true Oct. 24 to Nov. 2 with a series of games in the cities of Dammam, Jeddah and Riyadh.
The PBA Legends games are to coincide with the Haj holidays, which are expected to fall on Oct. 24-29.
According to a press release by the local organizers, the project is supported by Prince Nawaf bin Faisal, president of General Presidency of Youth Welfare.
The goodwill games are also aimed at strengthening the ties between the host country and the Philippines. Select local teams from Saudi Arabia will participate in what is being touted as the biggest basketball event organized by Coordinations Est. Company in cooperation with various regional Filipino basketball organizations as follows: the Pilipino Basketball Association (PBA) in Dammam, Overseas Filipino Basketball League (OFBL) in Jeddah, and the Philippine Arabia Basketball Association (PABA) in Riyadh. The PBA Legends Foundation is a happy participant in the program.
The program is under the overall leadership of Fahad Ibrahim Al Sekaity and Abdul Aziz Virgilio “Jawo” Dizon, a veteran basketball organizer in the Kingdom who said this event has been 10 years in the making.
Abe King, PBA Legends USA Foundation chair and president, and another US-based player Ponky Alolor are to join their counterparts from the Philippines in the 12-man Legends lineup to do a tour of Saudi Arabia. To fly in from the Philippines are Marlou Aquino, EJ Joseph Fiehl, Bonnel Balingit, Rodney Santos, Bong Hawkins, Gherome Ejercito, Gerald Esplana, Vince Hizon, Bal David and Noli Locsin. Also with the delegation is Ruffy Ignacio, PBA Legends USA Foundation secretary-general.
The program is guided by the principles of “Bridging people from all walks of life through the medium of basketball” and “One goal, one dream, one spirit, one mission, and one Vision, all for the love of sports.”
Unknown to many in the home country Philippines and abroad, but very popular in Saudi Arabia, the Filipino basketball communities in Saudi Arabia are a well-knit group of dedicated and hardworking kababayans who advance the twin cause of basketball and fellowship in that part of the world. In the last 15 years, this united group has been conducting basketball tournaments, whole-year round in various regions in Saudi Arabia, ala PBA in the Philippines.
The leaders of these organizations who work with dedication and diligence on various regional tournaments, on top of practicing their respective professions, are as follows: Al Sekaity, Coordinations Est. Company chairman; Dizon, Coordinations Est. Company CEO & PBA commissioner; PABA Commissioner Mohd. Khamis, project manager, western region, Jeddah; Mohd. Ibrahim, executive director Time-out Sports Academy, Jeddah; Boy Teves OFBL chairman, Jeddah; Rocky Gil, OFBL commissioner; Lito dela Cruz, OFBL technical director and Nasser Punponan, PABA regional director in Riyadh.
In the near future, the aforementioned organizations plan to provide scholarship grants to needy Filipino students in the Philippines, and to conduct medical-dental missions in coordination with the PBA Legends Foundation.
PBA Legends to visit Kingdom for goodwill games
PBA Legends to visit Kingdom for goodwill games
Pakistan rejects claims it approached ICC for dialogue over India match boycott
- Indian journalist Vikrant Gupta says Pakistan approached ICC after it informed PCB of legal ramifications of boycotting India clash
- Pakistan’s government has allowed national team to take part in ongoing World Cup but barred it from playing against India on Feb. 15
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) this week rejected an Indian journalist’s claim that it has approached the International Cricket Council (ICC) for a dialogue regarding Pakistan’s upcoming cricket fixture against India.
Indian sports journalist Vikrant Gupta wrote on social media platform X on Saturday that the PCB has reached out to the ICC for dialogue over its decision to boycott the Feb. 15 T20 World Cup match against India.
Gupta said the development took place after the ICC informed the PCB of the legal ramifications and potential sanctions the cricket governing body could impose if Pakistan boycotted its World Cup match against India.
Gupta said the ICC was responding to the PCB, which had informed the global cricket governing body in writing that it was pulling out of the match as Pakistan’s government had not allowed the national team to play the Feb. 15 fixture.
“I categorically reject the claim by Indian sports journalist Vikrant Gupta that PCB approached the ICC,” PCB spokesperson Amir Mir said in a statement on Saturday.
“As usual, sections of Indian media are busy circulating fiction. A little patience and time will clearly show who actually went knocking and who didn’t.”
Pakistan’s government earlier this month cleared the team’s participation in the T20 World Cup but barred them from facing India in Colombo on Feb. 15.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif later said the decision was taken to express solidarity with Bangladesh, after it was replaced by the ICC in the ongoing tournament.
ICC replaced Bangladesh with Scotland last month after the latter refused to play its World Cup matches in India due to security reasons.
Pakistan has blamed India’s cricket board for influencing the ICC’s decisions. Defense Minister Khawaja Asif this week called for a the formation of a new cricket governing body, saying the ICC is now hostage to “India’s political interests.”
India generates the largest share of cricket’s commercial revenue and hence enjoys considerable influence over the sport. Critics argue that this financial contribution translates into decisive leverage within the ICC.
A large part of that revenue comes from the Indian Premier League (IPL), the sport’s most lucrative T20 cricket competition, which is run by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Between 2024 and 2027, the IPL is projected to earn $1.15 billion, nearly 39 percent of the ICC’s total annual revenue, according to international media reports.
The ICC is headed by Jay Shah, the son of Indian Home Minister Amit Shah. The ICC chair is expected to be independent from any cricket board and take impartial decisions.
