PCB BoG to discuss departmental teams’ future too

KARACHI: All eyes of cricket fraternity are on the PCB’s Board of Governors (BoG) meeting scheduled to be held in Lahore on Friday (today), which is to be chaired by chairman Ehsan Mani.

The future of departmental cricket teams is not on the agenda but it would be discussed in detail, ‘The News’ learnt on Thursday.

More than 700 first class cricketers, the officials handling the departmental teams, office bearers of cricket associations at every level, tournament organisers at grassroots level, and coaches are keenly waiting for the outcome of the meeting because the draft of model constitution for associations is to be presented in the meeting.

Mani would brief the BoG members about his meeting with heads of departments whom PCB wanted to bear the expenditure of domestic cricket and own the regional teams.

More than 700 cricketers employed by around 30 departments have been deprived of their right to participate in tournaments organised by the PCB under the new format. Only 192 cricketers are participating in the ongoing Quaid-e-Azam (first class) Trophy.

The departments want that their teams be allowed to participate in tournaments organised by private parties so that their teams remain intact and their cricketers can continue to earn their bread and butter.

The PCB chiefs have realised that without departments’ financial assistance, the first class system of the country cannot be run properly, a source said. He added that PCB alone cannot bear all the expenditure of the country’s domestic cricket for a long period. Thus, the BoG members would try to find out some middle ground to resolve the issues of the financial burden of Pakistan’s domestic cricket and future of the departmental cricketers.

The role of COO Subhan Ahmed would also be discussed, although this, too, is not on the agenda. Subhan is stated to have been on leave for many days. Sources said there were serious differences between PCB CEO Wasim Ahmed and Subhan.