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In this week's "Beyond the Boundary" we look from the point of view of fans, at the recent controversies surrounding the leadership issue at the PCB and ask if anything good can come out of such uncertainity

 

 

 

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by Kaleem Mughal (27th May 2014)

 

Pakistan Cricket Board's chairman seat has been a subject of a lot of controversy of late, we have witnessed an embarrassing and seemingly endless power struggle between, the former chairman Zaka Ashraf and the current chairman, Najam Sethi. Both of them lay claim on the position of Pakistan Cricket Board's chairman.

This whole crisis started on, May 28, 2013 when the Islamabad High Court ordered the suspension of Zaka Ashraf, the head of Pakistan's cricket board, over dubious and controversial election process. Subsequently, Najam Sethi was named the new chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board, by the government of Pakistan on June 23rd, 2013

The appointment of Najam Sethi, as the new acting chairman of the PCB raised a few eyebrows, not many were expecting Najam Sethi - who hosts his own TV show and is a prominent journalist in Pakistan - to be named as the new PCB Head.

Suffice it to say, many Pakistan Cricket team fans were not entirely thrilled with this appointed as many of them were expecting someone with a cricketing background, the names that were being thrown around in the media for the next chairman did not mention Najam Sethi. The appointment came out out like a bolt from the blue, shocking pundits and fans alike. 

Having said that, the removal of Zaka Ashraf however, was not entirely unexpected, in fact it was pretty much on the cards. Although he was removed by the Islamabad High Court, however one could tell the writing was on the wall for Zaka, it was just a matter time before he was ousted. But then, as this is Pakistan and such unusual events are a norm, especially when the power at the top changes. At such times, all the important posts of the country are awarded to the favorites of the ruler, and everybody who was a part of the previous regime gets the boot.

What followed next was nothing short of an episode of some low-budget soap opera with Sethi being removed , Zaka coming back then being sent packing with Sethi restored for the 3rd time.

All this while, in a truly Pakistan “Chalta Hai” style, the world of PCB continued functioning in the most surreal fashion as they advertised for position of coaches for the national team, with Waqar Younis being selected as Head Coach and Grant Flower being announced as Batting specialist and Mushtaq Ahmed appointed as national spin coach. 

Whilst the Pakistani fans look with bewilderment, the term “laughing stock” is becoming common when PCB is mentioned in public. Even Najam Sethi looked a little sheepish when asked about the effect on morale on our players, brought on due to the constant musical chairs being played in Gaddafi Stadium! How long before one of the courts turns around yet another decision and Zaka Ashraf and Co come marching in to the same offices in Lahore? 

Mr. Ehsan Mani in a recent interview spoke about the absolute absence of depth in the management of PCB ie all major decisions were taken by the Chairman on his personal whim and had no real support from the institution. As a fan, one can only sit with one’s head in one’s hands as Pakistan moves from one crisis to another – not knowing how long the present guy will last. And what of the decisions taken during this period? As is there are indications that the newly appointed coaches are feeling uneasy about the situation and also the news that Halsall has withdrawn his application due to the “hectic schedule” of an international side! ( can we really blame him for that?)

Having said all of the above, it is worth pointing out that one can only hope that something good will come out of this fiasco but what could make things better? 

For a start an elected representative, someone who has played cricket at the highest level or has the track record of running a major sporting organization would be nice. But then let’s not be too greedy – an honest person with no political affiliation would do the job but is there such a person in Pakistan?

This entire debacle only resulted in making the Pakistan Cricket Board and Pakistan Cricket as a whole a laughing stock in front of the whole world, these last few months have been the most frustrating times for me and many others as Pakistan Cricket fans, the fans certainly did not deserve this.

We as fans can only wish that this is the last we have seen of this saga, and hope that there are no more twists in this forgettable tale...

 

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