Change in order
The line-up at the Pakistan Cricket Board, the corporate body which governs cricket in Pakistan, has been changed. After some days of thought, Prime Minister Imran Khan, who acts as patron of the PCB, has replaced Ehsan Mani with former Pakistan captain and current commentator, Ramiz Raja. Mani is believed to have asked the prime minister for an extension of one year in his term during his meeting with him to complete 'unfinished business'. However, it seems the prime minister was eager for change, and sought an improvement in the working of the PCB. This essentially seems to focus on the issue of reviving grassroots cricket, notably at the club level, and it is believed that Ramiz would be able to do a better job on this given his own experience in domestic cricket and at the top level for the Pakistan cricket team.
Ramiz also has considerable experience with international cricket, meeting people around the world in his role as commentator and a spokesman at times. How he will handle this new assignment is to be seen. Voices both for and against Ramiz have come out from various quarters. Ramiz is known as someone who is well educated, articulate, and generally soft spoken. The task before him is, however, a difficult one. To a large extent, cricket at the lower levels in Pakistan has broken down, with the corporate structure holding it up at the top. Ramiz will have his work cut out for him in reviving cricket at the lower level and also bringing it back in full force to schools across the country so that new talent can rise, and Pakistan can develop its true potential. While Pakistan has done well on both the Test and T-20 fields in recent years, there have been concerns about what more it can achieve and if it is living up to its full potential.
In all, sport depends a great deal on how many people are given the opportunity to play and participate at the best possible level. In many ways, this is more important than specialised coaching or centres set up at the PCB, although these of course play their part as well. As a cricketer who came through the domestic structure in Pakistan, Ramiz Raja will at least be well equipped to understand what is happening and also to deal with problems which still continue, including rifts within the Pakistan team, changes made perhaps too regularly within it and the other problems which underlie Pakistan cricket. It is good to see a former Pakistan captain at the helm of the PCB. How he manages its affairs will be important to the future of Pakistan cricket.
