The dilemma of domestic cricket
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Whenever a new body takes over the reigns of the Pakistan Cricket Board, the first thing it announces is the elusive revamp of the domestic cricket. The announcements sans actions follow and the plunge continues to plague the Pakistan cricket.
The PCB administration always changes following eventful defeats of the national team. In fact, domestic cricket is the backbone of the national team. If it is strong, it produces great players in all the fields. One day Pakistan beats world champions but the very next day it crashes to a level below that of even club cricket. Pakistan has always lacked consistency and it is because of poor domestic structure.
It is excellence of the domestic structure in Australia due to which it has been ruling the world cricket for last couple of decades. It has thrashed almost every team in all the three formats of the game now.
There are a lot of events in Pakistan domestic cricket - the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, Pentangular Cup, Pentangular One-Day Cup, Patrons' Trophy Grade II, Inter-District Cricket Championships and Twenty20 Cup besides various junior tournaments organised under the banner of the regional associations and the PCB.
Many departmental, regional, senior and junior teams take part in these competitions. But surprisingly, despite a round-the-clock schedule, domestic cricket fails to provide adequate backup for the national team. Interestingly, every chairman promises to revamp the domestic cricket but does nothing to improve the standards. The failure of the national team is inevitably linked with the domestic cricket.
The situation of the domestic cricket currently is alarming. If no emergency measures taken, soon the Pakistan team would find itself slipping below the top six in ICC ranking. There are various ways through domestic cricket can be improved.
It is apparent that regions or associations cannot be helped out to promote the standard of domestic cricket because regional teams are playing since seven years but still are unable to produce a single finger spinner, world class batsman, wicketkeeper, fast bawler and a quality opener. An example of the system's bankruptcy is that the LCCA didn't choose test wicket-keeper Zulqurnan Haider though he had been playing since 2002-03.
In the regions, affluent businessmen and feudal lords reign supreme and head the associations. They do not care if they drop any deserving player and pick even their blue-eyed drivers for first class teams such as Multan region. They use teams as public relation platforms or mint money.
When the players are selected for the district teams during trials, a number of players take part but when the teams are announced, several such names are seen in the list who never appeared for the trials. Regional cricket, like the rest of the county, is suffering nepotism, merit-violation and corruption.
The Pakistan cricket can grow if the PCB plays a positive role in strengthening the departments and issue directives for making their U-19 teams. If every department manages to establish U-19 team, Pakistan would have more than 200 senior and 200 U-19 paid players. Department normally take deserving players. Departments pick on merit while regions always pick players to oblige their friends. So through empowering the departments Pakistan cricket can improve gradually.
Many great players have come from departments like Javed Miandad, Ijaz Ahmed, Wasim Akram, Younus Khan, Moin Khan, Saqlain Mushtaq, Aqib Javed Waqar Younus, Amir Sohail, Saeed Anwer, Iqbal Qasim etc. The department, which pays the player always opts for a quality cricketer.
During the 80s Pakistan domestic cricket provided healthy back up to the national team because departments like PACO, UBL and PIA made their U-19 teams as backup to the senior teams. Because of establishing these teams, Pakistan got great players like Wasim, Ijaz and Masood Anwar. The departments used to pay Rs 200 to 400 to the U-19 players for each match. So it should be made compulsory for departments to raise U-19 teams.
If the PCB upgrades the level of grade-II cricket and introduces the four-day format for grade-II, then it would be much better for Pakistan cricket.
The upgradation of this format can groom many temperamental players. Sadly, Pakistan has lost many Test matches within three days which reflects the need for patience and stamina. If the PCB makes sporting pitches then cricket quality would be improved.
In the world every board introduces new formats as Australia brought split-over format that replaced the one-day cricket but the PCB can't bring new things because it is full of sycophants. They are always seen to flatter the chairman -- Yawar Saeed, Intikhab Alam, Wasim Bari, Ranas (Sultan, Shafqat), Zakir Khan and many others are good at singing praises for the chairman. They don't suggest anything meaningful. If the PCB does not wake up from slumber now, the Pakistan team would never get legends.
posted by Dilshad Rao @ 12:17 PM,
1 Comments:
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At August 31, 2010 at 6:31 PM,
Jalal HB said...
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I agree - whenever there is a change over, the new admin makes sure it revamps everything without even pausing to spare the good ones.
