Ehsan Mani, Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), has recently revealed one of his big aspirations and his plans how to reform Pakistan’s first-class structure, decentralize power and responsibility, and multiply opportunities and support for young players.
Mani, who is one of the most experienced and high-achieving cricket administrators in the world, said attracting foreign cricketers is one of his domestic renovation plans that will help him to realize his dream to see Pakistan as one of the biggest brands in the world cricket even at the domestic level.
Former ICC official further went on to reveal that he wants to see at least one or two overseas players in Pakistan’s first-class cricket to take domestic cricket to a completely different level and the PCB is keen on doing the same to improve their domestic system.
Mani said in a podcast: “I want to see foreign cricketers play in Pakistan's first-class cricket. The new domestic structure will play an important role in the realization of this dream. So, one of the things we are going to do with our first-class cricket is to encourage one or two overseas players to come and play.”
He further explained, “It is great for our players to be playing with the international players and that’s not going to happen overnight. We are working to take our first-class cricket to a completely different level and have it so competitive and so attractive for overseas players that they wish and keen to be part of it. I realized what happening was that the players, who played for the departments in first-class cricket, went and played Grade-II cricket for the regions.
So, they were blocking the pathway for youngsters, who come through Grade-II cricket into the first-class game. The system was totally whopped. When I looked at the averages and first-innings scores of our teams in the first-class matches, the first innings scores were one of the lowest in the world, lower than Zimbabwe. So, I knew something was not right. I concluded that we needed to have quality and quantity without cutting back on the opportunities for the youngsters to play cricket and working their way up if they are good enough.”
The PCB boss further said: “So we have set-up six Cricket Associations with hundred cities playing cricket among them, 16 to 17 cities per Cricket Association. Under them, we will have somewhere around three and a half or four thousand cricket clubs. We produce cricketers in Pakistan in spite of a system not because of the system so we have got to make the system where we capture the best and give every youngster an opportunity to work his way up through a proper structured pathway. There’s a lot of talk about people losing jobs in Pakistan.
I have worked out that six Cricket Associations with a hundred cities playing cricket with 3,000 clubs, we are going to create more jobs for former players. It is going to take time and it is not going to happen overnight.”
On bilateral cricket relations with India, Mani said he is keen to have the series with the arch-rivals, but that doesn’t mean he is going to run after it.
He signed off by saying, “I have taken the view, and I have let it be known to the BCCI, that we are always there to play, but we are not going to be running after them. It is their call, when they are ready to play, we will be willing to play.”
(With Cricketnext Inputs)
