close
Tuesday March 19, 2024

Need to improve club/school cricket in Pakistan: Pull up your socks, Mani tells federations

By Abdul Mohi Shah
January 04, 2019

ISLAMABAD: The Task Force on Sports chairman Ehsan Mani called on the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) and Olympic sports to pull up their system in order to get the required finances to run the bodies on their own and in an effective way.

The Force members are expected to meet Prime Minister Imran Khan for one final briefing within next few days before making their recommendations public. “We have already sought time to meet Prime Minister. Once he returns home from Turkey, we are expecting meeting with the premier.”

Talking to The News following Task Force on Sports meeting with the Minister of Inter Provincial Coordination (IPC) Dr Fahmida Mirza Thursday, Mani said findings were discussed in length and breadth. “The Task Force discussed the report finalized recently with the minister and considered all the relevant aspects. It was a comprehensive meeting in which all the matter pertaining to Olympic sports including hockey were discussed before one final meeting with the Prime Minister.” Apart from Ehsan Mani, who heads the Task Force, the meeting was also attended by secretary IPC Jamil Ahmad and Ali Raza (legal).

Ehsan Mani said there was a need to streamline the prevailing sports system in the country. “There is absolutely no prevailing system in sports in the country which has resulted in total chaos. Even cricket administration requires more professionalism and we are working on that.”

However, in all sports other than cricket, there was no administrative set-up resulting in poor administration and functioning. “The sports system in Pakistan requires collective efforts and cooperate system. So far in Pakistan the sports system is individually controlled which is fetching no results whatsoever. There is a need to broaden up the avenues. Every official in the federations should be responsible of his own work. You need a better, collective and professional management of the federations including hockey.”

He said that the PCB constitution has no room for doling out money to other sports including hockey. “I am not in favour of any such move. There is no constitutional provision which allows cricket board to dole out money to federations including hockey. Every federation will have to stand on its own feet in order to get positive results internationally and nationally and on financial front.”

Mani admitted that there was need to improve club and school cricket in Pakistan in order to fetch better results. “I think, the club system in the country is not up to the mark. We are struggling to have a better school cricket system in the country. That is the reason why we are struggling to have better results internationally at junior level.”