In exclusive remarks to PakPassion.net, Dilawar Mani spoke about the specific challenges associated with the upcoming series between Pakistan and Australia, and also looked back at the achievements of his career at the helm of the Emirates Cricket Board.

 by Shayan Siddiqui

28th July 2012

During his tenure of 3 years, the outgoing CEO of Emirates Cricket Board (ECB), Dilawar Mani, has overseen the establishment of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as a world class center for International Cricket. Whilst it is true that the UAE first gained fame in the 1980s with its iconic India versus Pakistan ODI cricket encounters held in Sharjah, in recent times, Pakistan’s inability to play its home games on its own soil has been pivotal in propelling The Emirates on to the world stage. 

With three major home series against South Africa, Sri Lanka and England organized successfully under his administration, Mani is now looking ahead to possibly his last and most demanding assignment as head of the ECB when Pakistan meet Australia for a six-match LOI series at the end of August. In exclusive remarks to PakPassion.net, Dilawar Mani spoke about the specific challenges associated with the upcoming series and looked back at the achievements of his career at the helm of the Emirates Cricket Board.


On challenges associated with the upcoming Pakistan versus Australia Limited Overs series:

Obviously the weather is a key talking point, I don’t think the venues are. The venues have been tried and tested and are internationally recognised, I don’t think we should even go there. The venues and the organisational ability of the Emirates Cricket Board, and the venues themselves - I think those have been tried and tested as well. Everyone’s up to speed on that. So the issue that does remain is obviously of the uniqueness of the timing of the series. In terms of the timings, there have obviously been certain concerns, but we’re trying our best to address them. Given that it will be August / early-September which are hot and humid months, special care is being taken, for example, to increase the number of ice baths in each venue and ice jackets, energy drinks - to double the quotas literally. We address those concerns that naturally exist due to the timing, but as far as the timings of the games themselves are concerned, T20 cricket is not an issue because that was always an 8 pm start. We suggested 5 pm for the ODIs but the PCB thought that even that might still be too hot and humid so we opted for 6 pm. So 6 pm is now the preferred start time for the ODIs. 

I guess if you want to narrow it down in terms of challenges, it's going to be the timings of the series. Everything else is now being treated as normal. Sharjah holds the record for the number of One Day Internationals held, and Dubai is very experienced - this is going to be the eighth or ninth night series that they’re hosting, so those aren’t the challenges. The challenge is strictly the timing. 


On the effects of the timings on attendance as well as transport arrangements:

I’m not sure that it is a concern. With a late start, obviously it would finish late but we’re trying to give it as many weekend games as possible which obviously will help. A 6 pm start, when the sun is close to setting, they would only have to spend maybe less than an hour in the sun. It basically means that people will consider coming to the venues. In the evening, the temperature drops, there’s no direct sunlight and it will be relatively cooler, so it could be attractive enough. 

In terms of transport arrangements, I would be surprised if you would have heard that with any relevance to Abu Dhabi. Abu Dhabi was arranged with the national taxi people. They had 50 cars parked there at all times. Abu Dhabi is not an issue and Sharjah is already in the heart of the city so again I don’t think it’s a major issue. The problem would have been Dubai and I’m sure they’re addressing that, but it’s a good point. I will address it with them to ensure that they also arrange for standby taxis.


On his legacy and achievements as Head of the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) and looking ahead at the future of cricket in the UAE:

I guess I’ve just been at the right place at the right time. I’ve tried hard. You say legacy, I say foundation. To me the foundations are there and it really does need to be taken to the next level, and the next level is its commercial success. I think that needs to be addressed now. Basically, we’ve held enough cricket, so we are internationally extremely well-established and well known. The venues are fantastic and the revival of Sharjah has been a major boost. They’ve come back very strongly and full credit to them for making the investment. We just need to make sure that we find enough sponsorships and commercial investments to find money in the game so we can reinvest it to further enhance everything - that’s the next step.

I’m into my seventh year - we've achieved a lot, but there are still a few shortcomings. I’ve asked them to look for someone who can bring certain attributes in terms of their commercial ability to help cover some gaps that continue to exist. I’ve done what I think I could over close to a 7-year period. 

As far as the ECB is concerned, the initial term was for three years and I really believe it was enough. I asked not to be re-nominated and I believe someone else should come in. We’ve laid down all the foundations, and I believe a fair amount of good came off it. It just needs someone to take it to the next level - and again, there are a lot of commercial aspects. By profession, I’m an accountant and I believe you now need good commercial people who are able to raise funds, because we can reinvest those funds back into the game - I think that’s a very important aspect.