England Tour: PCB and Pakistan Team Selection Controversy
Pakistan cricket never seizes to amaze us, both on and off the pitch. Once again there is a controversy coming out of the most turbulent cricket boards in the world, the PCB. The issue this time is the manner in which the team for the all important England tour was announced.
Many of the senior players including members of the selection committee are saying that they were not consulted before naming the team. Two separate teams were announced: one for Twenty20s, and the other for Test Matches.
The squads are normally announced on weekdays, and from Lahore, where the Pakistan Cricket Board has its headquarters. But this time it was quite unusual that the team was announced from Dambulla, where the Pakistan team was taking part in the Asia Cup. There was a meeting between Chief Selector Mohsin Hasan Khan, team coach Waqar Younis, team manager Yawar Saeed and of course, Captain Shahid Afridi. It is reported that the remaining selectors, who were in Pakistan, were not consulted for the decision.
There were one or two surprises, such as the inclusion of opener Yasir Hameed, who has been out of the team for a while, and Wahab Riaz, who has also been recalled after having a brief stint in the team earlier.
The likes of Younis Khan and Mohammad Sami were overlooked, who were believed to be strong contenders for the test squad. There is a consensus among the rest of the selectors that both players from Karachi should have been part of the squad. Following this turn of events, atleast one of the selectors is considering handing over his resignation.
One particular member of the selection committee said that he was not consulted at all regarding the team selection; instead he was given a call just before the team announcement, not to be consulted, but to ask about the statistics of a player who was under consideration for selection in one of the squads.
Chief selector Mohsin Khan has not yet made any public comments regarding the team selection, and is yet to return from Si Lanka.
The other point raised is the team composition; the argument is that the team lacks experience. The exclusion of Younis Khan has been hugely criticized; the former captain was handed down an indefinite ban after the Australian tour. However, he was part of the list of 7 players whose bans and fines were later overturned.
But there was one more problem with Younis Khan which was not there with other players who were banned; PCB Chairman Ijaz Butt had said that Younis’ selection is pending till he apologizes to the board, which was not the case with Afridi, Shoaib Malik or the Akmal brothers.
The former Chief Selector Iqbal Qasim said that he felt Younis was dealt with unjustly, and he has been victimized. Iqbal Qasim was the chief selector when Pakistan went on their worst ever tour (the disastrous tour of Australia), and resigned after the horrific results. Qasim said that Younis fought his case in a proper manner and was cleared, so he deserved to be considered for the test squad.
The other senior name missing from the squad is another former captain Mohammad Yousuf, who decided to retire from International cricket after being indefinitely banned by the PCB.
The two afore-mentioned players (Younis and Yusuf) have collectively scored almost 30% of the runs for Pakistan in test cricket since October 2004, while also being responsible for more than half of the test hundreds scored by Pakistan in that period.
It remains to be seen whether the teams selected for the all important tour are justified or not. But there is another school of thought that claims that Pakistan cricket has suffered in past because they have had number of former captains in the side, which hampers the ability of a captain to assert himself in the team. Now with only Shoaib Malik being a player who has been a former captain, Shahid Afridi may have a better chance of leading the team the way he wants, and getting some results.
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