Najam Sethi, chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) governing board, made it clear on Thursday that he will act on the advice of the government when it comes to cricket relations with India. Sethi on Wednesday was named chairman of a 14-member committee to take charge of the country’s race affairs for four months after Ramiz Raja was sacked as PCB chief. “The governments of both countries must be consulted when it comes to bilateral and other cricket relations between Pakistan and India,” Sisi told reporters in Lahore.
India has not traveled to Pakistan since the 2008 Asian Cup, while the bilateral series scheduled for early 2009 was canceled following the Mumbai terrorist attacks on November 26 of that year.
Pakistan did travel to India for a six-match short white ball series in 2012, but there has been no bilateral cricket in the past 10 years. The two teams have only met each other in various tournaments in the International Cricket Council (ICC) and Asian Cricket Council (ACC).
Mr. Najam Sethi was interviewed by local media shortly after taking up the chairmanship of the Pakistan Cricket Board Management Committee. pic.twitter.com/Q1E5AliIuy
— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) December 22, 2022
A controversy erupted in October when ACC chairman and BCCI secretary Jay Shah said India would not travel to Pakistan next year for the 50-plus Asia Cup – likely to be held in September 2023 – after the PCB had threatened to take the Withdrew from the 50-man World Cup to be held in India next year.
Sisi said his main task is to fully implement the 2014 constitution and restore the council and general assembly under the old system within 120 days and hold elections.
But Sethi, who was chairman and chief executive from 2013 to 2018 before stepping down after the Imran Khan-led government took power in 2018, appeared unhappy with the old management’s announcement that Pakistan would host a Test team against New Zealand.
“I don’t know if the lineup needs to be tweaked, we’ll see if new ideas are needed. It would be better if the lineup wasn’t announced,” he said.
The government issued a circular on Wednesday night confirming the appointment of the management board, which also ousted Ramiz Raja, but current chief selector Muhammad Wasim announced the line-up for the New Zealand series.
Sethi explicitly hinted that there will be changes to the board, including in cricket-related areas.
“I think we did a good job in the four or five years I was in office before I resigned. But what happened in the last four years is there for all to see,” he said.
Sisi also made it clear that the country’s prime minister wants to revitalize departmental teams and regional cricket associations.
“This is our number one priority to revitalize cricket in the department because over the last four years we have seen a sharp increase in unemployment and a shortage of cricketing talent. The old system has worked well for us and we have received a lot of support from the domestic cricket team. Players. Now it looks like we can only get players from PSL,” he said.
Sisi said all the groundwork for launching the Pakistan Super League and convincing international teams to return to play in Pakistan was done during his final term.
“It’s great that all the teams are now touring Pakistan and the New Zealand tour is very important to us. But we also have to ensure a steady supply of domestic cricketing talent,” he said.
Sisi also expressed his concern over the team’s selection issues and performance in the recent Test series against England, which Pakistan lost 3-0.
Featured Video of the Day
Anurag Thakur celebrates for Indian blind cricket team after T20 World Cup win
topics mentioned in this article
