The PCB Has Not Handled the
Resources Well
By
Dr Zafar Altaf
IN
THE TWO test match series Pakistan beat South Africa 1-0. The
one day and test series were played in Punjab and led to the slogan
that Punjab is not Pakistan.
Having
served in East Pakistan I was conscious of this criticism and
indeed the shadow of the weapon was present everywhere. Pakistan
had done an over kill in trying to provide security and prove
that Pakistan was safe. In fact it did the reverse.
Why
did South Africa come to Pakistan? The reason goes back to many
years when the security problem was not as serious as it is today.
International Cricket body had approved these tours and SA was
in a bind. Should they come or should they not? Instead of negotiating
with them we decided that we would use the usual bullying tactics.
The CEO of the PCB decided that he was going to seek damages in
millions of dollars.
In
a materialistic world where everyone is crucified on a cross of
dollars, the SA board buckled. Rather than give the damages they
decided to come and play and risk. We who live in Pakistan and
who have a strong faith are conscious that everything belongs
to God and we eventually have to go on a preordained date and
time. It is so writ. Not so with South Africans or the New Zealanders.
Both
have had difficulties in adjusting to, not so much the players
but the PCB officials. Having won barely and having saved the
second test match we came with our usual statement reminiscent
of the bully boys. The coach announced that the team is good enough
for Australia. That is the side to beat.
What makes Australia so strong is the mind that they bring to
the game. They are tough mentally. Their academy is not an apology
like ours. Their cronyism is not understood and one has to perform
at all levels to win spurs. You do your bit and you have to keep
on performing for there are no allotted seats. Daddy- mommy boys
do not get in to the act.
The
euphoria in the subcontinent is that we seldom win a series outside.
Pakistan has had disastrous tours of Australia and I dare say
abroad. Our playing conditions are not up to any standards. They
are slow turners and are low bounce wickets. The result the ball
seldom goes above knee high and all that the batsman has to do
is not make any silly mistakes and he can have it your way.
It
was at Faisalabad that Lillee went without any wicket and Tasleem
Arif got a double century. Lillee went on to make the statement
that when I die please bury me here may be there will be some
life in the wicket because of that. It is atrocious what the subcontinent
does.
The
result when you go to Australia and NZ the ball wobbles in the
air and has movement off the wicket. To add to our misery the
bounce is high and normally is above waist height. In order to
cope with this relentless situation one has to be focused and
concentrate. The minute one’s concentration is lost that
very moment the innings comes to an end.
The
two players that are of any reckoning and who matter, Inzimam
and Yousaf Yohanna. The others are inconsequential. While others
are building their teams for the next World Cup we are getting
to it through the old boys. Discard Moin for two years bring back
Rashid and then kick him for his acts that no one knows about.
Is that how we treat our human capital. It happened with Waqar
Younis, it happened with Wasim Akram and it will happen with others
as well.
What
we do not like India loves. Wasim is now with the ESPN in India
and was reported to be under consideration as fast bowler coach,
though the news was denied by all later. Pakistan’s CEO
and others have abused him and have taken a heavy toll because
of their hate campaign, all on the basis of hearsay. Wasim’s
talent is immense and it is a pity that he will not be used by
Pakistan. But they have done this with all and sundry. They have
done this with Intikhab and with any one who has wielded the bat
or the ball with some talent and wisdom.
But
this apart the PCB has a cricket team that has two categories
of players, the very geriatric and the very young. The result
is that they will not have a team worth the name for the next
World Cup. The only advantage is that WI has wickets that are
low bounce and turners. So that Pakistan will be assured of a
safety net that may not have been theirs had they gone to Australia
and NZ or England for that matter?
But
while all this was going on the selectors and the coach came to
odds and ends as to the selection of the side. The battle is always
played in the press and the press loves a conflict. Why should
the coach seek redress? The captain is the one who should matter.
It is he who leads the team and not the coach. But in the absence
of deep understanding of the game these matters become sources
of deep controversy. The PCB lives on with its staff and I wonder
how many cans of worms will come out of the last four years activity?
Scandals
are already coming out of the PCB. Power corrupts and it is all
circumventing power that circumvents all the way. Morals are after
all man made and although we speak of the power of the Almighty
God and His ways man does succumb to Satan and the ways of pleasure.
I will leave this at the point where I will say that whoever has
the will to pervert the social system will ultimately have to
pay the consequences for his actions and activity.
The
PCB has not handled the resources as well as it should have. They
have brought in silly cricketers and even sillier coaches and
have paid the price for it. Can they tell me if the young boys
could understand G. Boycott, great cricketer though he may be?
I will bet my last penny that you and I cannot understand him.
What about PY—what? The great trainer turned coach? Who
asked for him and who advised the PCB? Did they not know the difference
between a coach and a trainer? And no matter how many coaches
and analysts you may have with you, the game is played in the
middle.
And
those who have not been in the middle can never understand the
decisions that are made in a matter of split second. So what of
the coaches? I suggest that J. Miandad be taken seriously and
since the Aussies won’t come to Pakistan we should go and
challenge them in Australia. Sharjah may be discounted. We now
have a coach who can wield the bat and prepare the boys for the
mental stuff tomorrow and the many morrows that can come our way.
We
all have our days and the important thing is to do well by one’s
country. It is the only one we have. The nation is the mirror
image of the game or is it the other way round? Brutalities and
cricket do not go together and yet there have been serious fights
on the outcome of the matches in the local tournaments and in
Gujranwala the other day some of them lost their lives? Many civic
responsibilities follow from the game and it is the duty of the
PCB to ensure that tolerance is enhanced and players and coaches
and selectors are not on a short fuse. But who bothers.
Please
God allot to me all the matches for the future for I have not
learnt the lessons of life and how to lose and how to win and
have compassion for the other team.
The
writer is a former Federal Secretary, Government of Pakistan
