PCB takes a U-turn: Trials announced for U19 teams

KARACHI: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Thursday decided to hold open trials for the selection of six Under-19 Cricket Association squads that will feature in the National One-Day Tournament from October 13 and National Three-Day Tournament from November 5.

The open trials will now be held from September 16-19 at major cricket centres of all Cricket Associations and those who were born on or after September 1, 2001, will be eligible to appear, the PCB said.

To provide equal opportunities to all the players and avoid crowding at the venues, the local players will undergo trials on day one while the teenagers arriving from outside the venues will attend trials on the second day, the Board said. “This will also help the non-local players to plan their respective trips,” the Board said.

Following the two-day activity, 40 players will be shortlisted for each of the six Cricket Associations, who will feature in trial matches, on September 18 and 19, to stake claims in the final 20-player squads.

The trials will be held under strict Covid-19 protocols. The players have been asked to bring their own food items and energy drinks to keep themselves hydrated.

The PCB will run a four-day-long online registration process from September 11-14.

The players will be required to bring original copies of their B-forms for pre-trial age verification.

National High Performance Centre coaches will be involved in the trial process at the LCCA ground in Lahore and the Pindi Cricket Stadium in Rawalpindi. Trials in Abbottabad, Karachi, Multan, Quetta will be conducted by members of the National Junior Selection Committee, who will be joined by the teams’ head coaches.

The PCB has been encouraged by the government’s decision to open educational institutions and has now decided to hold open trials, chairman national junior selection committee Saleem Jaffar said. “The selectors had initially invited limited number of players due to the evolving Covid-19.

“The selectors have also made this decision based on feedback and comments we have received from various quarters on certain deserving players, who had failed to make the cut in the initially list of 291 players,” he said.

“With limited age-group cricket played at the grass roots level in the past 18 months and supported by the government’s decision to open educational institutions from 15 September, it is appropriate that we revisit our strategy and convert this into open trials, which will provide equal and fair opportunity to all cricketers born on or after 1 September 2001.

“However the eligible players are strongly advised to bring with them their original B-forms for pre-trial age verification,” he said.

Trials details: 8am to 6pm: September 16, trials for local players; September 17, trials for outstation players; September 18-19, trials of shortlisted players.

Venues and selectors: Balochistan, Bugti Stadium. Selection panel: Wajahatullah Wasti, Hussain Khosa and Mazhar Deenari

Central Punjab, LCCA Ground. Selection panel: Tanveer Shoukat and Irfan Fazil

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Abbottabad Stadium. Selection panel: Taufiq Umar, Saqib Faqir and Mohammad Siddiq,

Northern, Pindi Cricket Stadium. Selection panel: Bilal Ahmed and Fahad Akram

Sindh, National Stadium. Selection panel: Sanaullah Baloch, Tahir Mehmood and Hanif Malik

Southern Punjab, Multan Cricket Stadium. Selection panel: Saleem Jaffer, Kamran Khan and Hafiz Majid Jahangir

Temperatures checks will be done on entry points of the venues, and the players will have to wear masks when not inside the boundary ropes and maintain social distancing at any given time. The sharing of equipment and use of saliva on ball will not be allowed.