Pakistan: Cricket board outlines plans to uplift game

Lahore, April 14: Steps are being taken by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to organize cricket from under-15 to national level and modern facilities are being provided in all major centers of the country.

PCB director, Yawar Saeed, announced decisions taken by the PCB ad hoc committee advisory board during a press conference at the Qadhafi Stadium here on Friday.

The advisory board met on Thursday and Friday with PCB Chairman Lt.-Gen. Tauqir Zia in the chair. The PCB director, said that paceman Shabbir Ahmad is also being sent to the West Indies. He would be watched and coached by great pacemen of yesteryear Michael Holding and Jeff Thomson. Along with him pace-men Irfan Fazil and Mohammad Akram are also likely to get coaching tips from the great speedsters.

Each member of the Pakistan team, which won the triangular tournament in Sharjah, has been awarded Rs 2,10,000.

Modern facilities will be provided in the stadia at Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Peshawar and Faisalabad where the England team's matches are to be organized this winter. The enclosures will be given a new look.

Plan and design of a cricket academy at Lahore will be presented to the PCB chairman on Monday. The academies will be spread to other cities as well. Each academy will be having a three storey building with all modern facilities. Three pitches i.e., one spinning one and two having pace in them will be prepared at each academy. The academies will have gymnasium, squash courts, swimming pools, galleries and restaurants.

In order to streamline the affairs of the PCB, a general manager for administration and another one for cricket operations have been appointed. Khalid Butt has been appointed as corporate, media and public relations manager.

The Pakistan under-15 team will visit Malaysia in June to play a tournament of Asian countries. Later, the team will participate in the Under-15 World Cup tournament in England in July. Masood Anwar will be the coach and Brigadier Munawwar Rana manager of the team.

The Pakistan under-17 team will play matches at Karachi, Hyderabad and Quetta in July. The International Cricket Council (ICC) is supporting the program.

Pakistan `A' team will tour Kenya in July. Dr Tauseef, a nutritionist, has been asked to take charge of the Pakistan `A' team. A three-nation tournament will be organized by LG in September. Besides Pakistan and South Africa, a third country will take part in the competition.

Contract with the Sharjah cricket authorities will be revised. The PCB has decided to deal with all parties directly and revise all the contracts already signed. For school boys and juniors Pepsi clinics will be organized. A contract has been signed with TWI for showing highlights of the England team's matches in Middle East for US$500,000 and in Europe for US$800,000.

The finances of the PCB have also been streamlined and one hundred million rupees (Rs 100,000,000) have been deposited in Defence Savings. Austerity measures have been adopted. Outstanding dues of Richard Pybus, Dan Kiesel and Dave Nylor have been cleared by paying an amount of $ 15,000.

The blind cricket will be supported. Air tickets will be provided by the PCB to the Pakistan blind team for its tour of South Africa. Deaf and dumb cricket will also be brought under the patronage of the PCB. The women's cricket factions are being asked to sink their differences and patch up into one body so that the PCB takes its control as well.

On April 17, a presentation will be made to Gen Tauqir Zia about the PCB constitution as well those of the associations.

A committee is being formed to raise the standard of coaching and umpiring. Help of senior coaches is being sought in this connection. Negotiations are on with former Test opener Mudassar Nazarto appoint him as cricket analyst. An operation room will be built where video-films and records of all team and of the Pakistan team will be made available.

The Afghanistan Cricket Association has been given Rs 40,000 by the PCB to play matches in Balochistan and NWFP. Nepal, Singapore, Malaysia and United Arab Emirates will send one player each, who will get training in Pakistan.

Plan for the domestic cricket is being finalized which will envisage promotion of cricket from schools, colleges, districts to national level. The departments will also be allowed to play in different tournaments. The regional associations will be assisted in getting sponsorship.