This question came to my mind when I read about the settlement that Shahid Afridi and the PCB have come to.

I'm no fan of PCB, I think that's pretty clear. But, I'm also not a fan of this knee-jerk reaction by former cricketers to slam PCB at every opportunity. It seems to be as entrenched a tradition as any in Pakistan.

Today, I read an article on Cricinfo about former crickters attacking PCB for the defeats in Sri Lanka. Here are some of the comments:

Former captain Aamer Sohail said the decision to experiment with makeshift openers was baffling.

"No one, from the board officials to the team management, seems to have a clear plan in mind," Sohail told AFP. "Some of the decisions make no sense, like two regular openers were sent to Sri Lanka but we used makeshift openers in the series which we have lost now."

...

Another former captain, Zaheer Abbas, said the blame lay with the PCB. "The World Twenty20 win had hid all the weaknesses in the team and the cricket board," he said. "Since this board has taken over we have lost the Champions Trophy (hosting rights), we have been stripped of World Cup 2011 matches and we have failed to handle the team, so this is total mismanagement, which is unacceptable.

"The coach (Intikhab Alam) must go, and the captain (Younis Khan) also lacks the qualities of a good leader."

Former chief selector Abdul Qadir was unhappy with the nature of the defeats. "They should feel ashamed," he said. "Defeats are part and parcel of the game, but shameful defeats are unacceptable."

To Aamir: ok, you have a point. But Pakistan has had an opener problem ever since you and Saeed Anwar left. At least you should know that. They couldn't persist with Butt. And there are some contenders so they have to try them out at some point, and given the dearth of international cricket for Pakistan, there are only so many opportunities they have.

To Zaheer Abbas: Wow. Yes, losing the Champions Trophy and WC 2011 hosting rights was totally PCB's fault. Newsflash - Pakistan has been virtually under siege by terrorists for the last few years. A former PM, the Sri Lankan cricket team, and a major hotel in the capital are among the more well-known targets. But of course, this is all PCB's fault. I mean, if Ijaz Butt could just grab an assault rifle and some army fatigues and take care of the terrorists, we'd have been able to host both tournaments. Simple as that! And as for Intikhab Alam - he's the only Pakistan manager/coach who has won us World Championships, so you may want to rethink that. Re: Younis Khan, ok, you may have a point. But substantiate it - give examples.

To Qadir: Hmmm, are you still kicking yourself in the balls for relinquishing your selection duties a bit too early, so that you are made a laughing stock when Pakistan won the T20 WC??? Sounds to me like that. Has it occurred to you that Pakistan are playing a much superior team, and are just outclassed? And that playing their first Test series in so long may have had something to do with it.

Rashid Latif seemed to be a voice of reason:

Former wicketkeeper Rashid Latif, however, ruled out changes in management and said the fault lay with the players. "Changes are not the solution," Latif said. "I think the team needs to go back to basics and there should be no interference in team planning. The team must play to its own plan."

Here's the simple truth - Pakistan is not a good ODI or Test team at this point. They are ok in T20 and were able to put together some remarkable performances to win the WC. But in the longer forms of the game, they are rusty and the players lack the temperament. This is something that will hopefully change once they play more international cricket; to expect them to immediately perform great in all arenas is unfair.

I think the pool of players is pretty good (even if the final selection/order can be tinkered around with). And Management is doing a decent job by getting Pakistan lots of international cricket after somewhat of an exile. But the lure of T20 and a weak domestic structure is changing cricketers' habits, and that especially impacts Pakistani cricketers who are almost genetically inclined to play T20 style in all forms of the game.

Is there justifiable criticism to be made against the PCB? Yes, always. But is this knee-jerk shouting and screaming by ex-cricketers for heads to roll justified after every single loss, especially this series? I don't think so. If there is criticism, put some reasons out there, and offer some solutions. I'm a huge fan of ex-cricketers like Zaheer and Qadir (and even Aamir to some degree! :), and mean no disrespect to them, but I think that they have all had their chances to make changes in PCB and the cricketing setup, but they enjoy being armchair administrators instead.

Oh, and if you thought the mental image of Ijaz Butt with a gun was too much too handle, well here's something to make that image permanent!

I just came back from a short trip to Pakistan (with a very brief stopover in Dubai). During the trip, I had three random encounters with cricket personalities, and had one interesting airport security check. Completely pointless, but it's a lazy Friday so thought I'd share them with you.

The first encounter was in Lahore. On a spring afternoon, my cousins and I went to Lahore Gymkhana for lunch. As we walked out, we saw a familiar figure talking to a couple of people. At first I remarked that this individual looked a lot like Salim Malik. But after another second, I realized it was indeed him! He headed toward our direction and I asked him for a quick photograph. He very politely accepted, we chatted for about 30 seconds, and off he was to play golf. Now, let me state this clearly and under oath, NO MONEY WAS EXCHANGED BETWEEN MR. MALIK AND MYSELF IN RETURN FOR THE PHOTOGRAPH!!! :)

The next encounter was with none other than the CEO of PCB, Mr. Ejaz Butt. He was attending my cousin's wedding (he is related to another cousin's in-laws). My father introduced me to him, and I thought about spending 10 minutes with Mr. Butt, but then realized that it might only ruin the mood of the festivities since the outcome of any discussion would not have been too pretty. So I just said my salaams and he was kind enough to respond and do the usual 5 second chit chat. Have to say though that Mr. Butt was sitting alone for most of the time. I'm sure he's just a quiet guy!

My third and final encounter was at JFK airport in New York. This was perhaps the most surprising of all. As I'm waiting for my baggage, I turn around and see that Mr. Steve Bucknor is standing right next to me! Looks a bit different without the hat, and he's a bit taller than I imagined. He did give a bit of the trademark "slow death" treatment as he tried to figure out whether I was friend or foe - he didn't raise the finger, I was cleared! I talked with him and his traveling companion (perhaps his wife) for a few minutes as we waited for baggage. Hot off his Test retirement, he flew from SA to Dubai, Dubai to JFK (same flight as me, but likely on the upstairs first/business deck of the A380 rather than with us common folk), and was now flying to Barbados for the 3rd and 4th ODIs, which will be his last international appearances. I thanked him for his service to cricket (probably should have also thanked him for not giving Miandad out LBW in the WC 92 final ;). His luggage included a massive cricket kit bag with ICC logos. Not particularly sure why he carries it with him...can't imagine he needs much equipment, but to each his own.

And, finally, the security check I refer to? Well, that was at Islamabad airport, as I was leaving on my flight to Dubai. Put my backpack in the x-ray machine, walked through the metal detector, and waited for my backpack. The screener signals a further review of my bag. No biggie, have a look I say. He says he's only interested in my keys. Keys? OK, fine with me. So I open the front pocket of my backpack and point to the keys. He then says that there's something circular and shiny on my keychain that he wants a closer look at. At that moment it hits me what he's looking for. Back in Jan 2005, I visited Australia and went to Bowral (naturally!). I picked up a Don Bradman keychain from the musuem there, and I have attached it to my keys ever since. So the screener took a closer look at the keychain, front and back, and probably realized that an image of Bradman driving a ball is perhaps a dangerous weapon on the field, but not so much on a flight! Thankfully the keychain was returned to me, and off I went on my flight!

Enjoy the weekend, the beginning or end of it - depending on what part of the world you live! :)

Abu Dhabi - Finally!

That was my immediate reaction when my flight from Islamabad landed here this evening.

I was in Pakistan - in Islamabad and Lahore - for the last 12 days for my brother's wedding ceremony.

Amidst all the chaos - the disqualification of the Punjab Government, the riots, the strikes, and the attack on Sri Lanka - we managed to hold a wedding and several functions, dinners, and lunches, without incident.

The entire experience in Pakistan (besides the wedding) left me shocked, appalled, disappointed, and greatly saddened.

My reaction is relatively late in coming for two reasons mainly - firstly, the wedding kept me very busy, and secondly, I needed time to think considering that I had so vehemently defended Pakistan as a cricket host on this blog, as well as on every other blog, that I did not want to sound like Dominic Cork.

My recent discussion with RGB on Well Pitched was the last of my countless arguements in defence of Pakistan as a cricket host.

I first thought about that discussion when I received an early morning phone call from a friend in Dubai, who woke me up to inform me about the attack on the Sri Lanka team bus.

How could cricketers be attacked in Pakistan?

Who could do such a thing?

Why would anyone attack Sri Lankan cricketers?

A thousand questions went through my head, and I felt like such a fool having stated on numerous occassions that cricketers have never been and will never be terrorist targets in Pakistan.

How wrong was I.

More than that, how wrong was the PCB.

How wrong was the Pakistan Government.

Today we are thanking God that India refused to tour Pakistan. Had it been them instead of Sri Lanka, we would have been going through a 4th war with them.

However, I believe that had it been India, then the Presidential level security, that was promised by the PCB and the Pakistan Government, would have been provided; and the attackers would not have even come close to where they were on that Tuesday morning.

The popular opinion at present is that no one was expecting the Sri Lankans to be attacked, which is why the security that was promised was not provided.

That leaves the PCB and the Pakistan Government with no credibility at all. Not that they had much to begin with but such blatant failure to keep their word is criminal.

I am surprised that no action has been taken against the PCB till now.

Its clear to everyone that 2 pick up trucks, with a dozen policemen serving the Punjab police, carrying 40 year old rifles, is not Presidential Level Security.

I feel for the policemen who lost their lives in the line of duty. Moreso because they were not supposed to be there to begin with.

Presidential level security constitutes of commandos, elite forces, members of the armed forces; all armed with the latest ammunition and guarded with bullet proof vests.

The policemen had nothing.

So then why isn't anyone taking the PCB to task for not keeping their word?

An investigation is being conducted, some attackers have even been identified, but what about someone telling the PCB that they failed.

They failed big time!

On top of that Ijaz Butt and Javed Miandad have the audacity to call Broad a liar and demand for a ban on him.

This is beyond appalling.

Its high time these people stand up and take responsibility for their failures and apologize to not only Sri Lanka, but also to the ICC and the rest of the cricketing world, including the fans, who have been deprived of cricket in Pakistan for many many years to come.

Obaid talked of hope, while Sledge demanded PCB do the right thing.

Lets hope they do!

Hope that Pakistan returns to normalcy, for its too beautiful a country to be destroyed by some bearded fanatics. Hope that cricket comes back to Pakistan, for its too talented a cricket nation to be deprived of competition at home.

Hope that the PCB, for the first time, accepts the responsibility for its actions, or rather the lack of.

Abra Ka Dabra is what Pakistan's new captain, Younis Khan, wants his players to say to overcome the problems that the country's cricket team has been facing.

And I was always told not to believe in magic!

After a record breaking defeat, hastily arranged meetings between the Chairman and Malik, the selectors, other board members, and Younis, it was announced that Malik had stepped down and Younis was the new captain.

What went on behind those closed doors, no one knows, but I am intrigued to find out what it was that Ijaz Butt offered to Younis that made him accept a job he had declined twice before.

I tried to dig but I don't have the answer.

I do have some quotes though from the Chairman and the new captain, which I will try and read into.

"We haven't sacked Malik. In fact, I met Malik and told him about the situation, as the whole nation felt disappointed over the team's poor performance and a lot of people wanted a change. That is why I requested Malik to step down and he gracefully accepted" said Butt.

That essentially means that Pakistan were humiliated, no one wanted Malik as captain anymore, so we asked him to get lost. He had no choice but to listen to us.

"He (Younus) must have some reasons for not taking the captaincy before" said Butt.

I know why he didn't take the captaincy before, so I made sure I gave him what he asked for.

"I didn't need to think twice this time in accepting the post" Younis told Cricinfo.

Butt gave me everything I asked for so I accepted. There was no way I could have turned that offer down.

"It is and it isn't a tough challenge in a sense. Captaincy is always tough, but I've already been captain before and I don't think you can be in a tougher situation than the 2006 Champions Trophy, when we lost Shoaib and Asif a day before the tournament."

Captaincy is easy and it is hard. Really I don't know what it is. I have done it before so I know what it is but honestly I don't really know. Before I kept thinking about what if Shoaib and Asif were here, now I know they are not here. So it will be easy to not think.

"I will try and fix things that aren't right at the moment"

I will kick all those players who don't listen to me out of the team.

"But the boys will all have to get together and wave their magic wands. I can't just wave it by myself"

The boys will have to learn magic tricks and learn how to say 'abra ka dabra' in sync, otherwise the magic will not work. If I do it alone, it will not work. Afridi, Gul, Salman, Sohail, Misbah, they all will have to do it together. Only then will we create magic.

"I'm at the age now where I don't have a huge amount of time, but still some time"

You don't know my real age as we all fake it in Pakistan so you don't really know if I have a lot of time or not.

"Fitness permitting I can still play another three-four years, but it's not the same as if you're younger and can really plan long-term"

If everyone keeps following my orders, there's no reason why I can't remain captain for the next 3-4 years. Either way I am approaching 40 so I can't really plan long term.

"There is enough time to make a mark though. Difficult decisions will have to be made and you have to be brave to be captain"

As I said, no one really knows I'm close to 40. Everyone thinks I'm 31 so I have enough time. Malik liked some players and kept them in the team. I don't like any of them so I will drop all of them even if they are your favorites.

"But I have nothing to lose and I'm naturally aggressive so that will come through in my captaincy"

I am natural born pathan and you will see that in my captaincy. I will fight against anyone who does not listen to me and I will not lose because I am a pathan.

As of going to press, news had come in that Younis Khan's top most demand was to have a pathan dominated team. With 4 pathans already in the XI (Younis, Afridi, Gul, and Sohail Khan), it is believed that Yasir Hameed and Mohammad Rizwan will also be roped in.

On the bright side, it was also brought to our notice that Younis Khan is the first pathan to be appointed captain of Pakistan since Imran Khan.

Rewind back a year and the Nasim Ashraf led PCB had announced the fresh list of contracted Pakistan cricketers.

Mohammad Asif had been upgraded to a Category A contract putting him among the top notch of cricketers in Pakistan, while Shoaib Akhtar had been relegated to mere retainership, a new category that was formed purely for players who did not appear in enough international games de to lack of fitness or discipline or selectorial blunders.

That had resulted in an outburst from Shoaib Akhtar, who criticized the PCB, refused to sign the retainer contract, and went on to bad mouth Nasim Ashraf & Co.

Shoaib was eventually banned, fined, and dumped, while Asif, the new blue eyed boy of the administration went on to smuggle some drugs and test positive for a banned substance for the second time in as many years.

A year and an administration change later Shoaib Akhtar has landed a Category A central contract from the PCB, while Asif is no where to be heard of.

Life comes a full circle they say.

For Shoaib and Asif it has not only come a full circle but they have exchanged the circles in the meantime as well.

The Ijaz Butt led PCB announced this years list of contracted players this afternoon and as always they dished out quite a few surprises.

Besides Shoaib, Danish Kaneria, who had also been relegated to retainer status last year, has also landed a Category A contract.

How absurd is that.

Kaneria did not play a single international match during 2008.

If Pakistan doesn't play any tests this year, like 2008, Kaneria will not play any internationals in 2009 either.

And he would have ended the year pocketing Rs 3 million (US $150,000) without playing a single game.

Same for Shoaib who as history tells us may play only a handful of matches.

I'd like to smoke what Intikhab Alam, Yawar Saeed, and Abdul Qadir have been smoking.

The men who decided on the contracts.

As expected Mohammad Yousuf is no where in the list either.

I believe this was the ideal time for the PCB to take steps in bringing the ICL players back into the fold given the situation with India at this point in time.

With none of the players expected to appear in the ICL or the IPL, this was PCB's chance to make sure that its players stayed loyal to them.

Yousuf along with the likes of Razzak and Imran Nazir could have been roped in.

Obviously the PCB thinks otherwise.

There are yet more surprises in the list of contracted players.

Faisal Iqbal, Yasir Hameed, and Mohammad Hafeez have been handed Category B contracts.

Niether of them is even close to playing an international match for Pakistan yet they are placed in a category above the likes of Nasir Jamshed, Fawad Alam, Saeed Ajmal, and Rao Iftikhar, who have not only are regular members of the side but have also put in some match winning performances during last year.

Whats more, Sohail Tanvir is placed in Category B. The country's best 20-20 bowler and arguable the best ODI one as well and he is among another 3 cricketers who don't stand a chance to play for Pakistan.

Get me those smokes. Seriously.

PCB has definitely pleased some players for reasons best known to them. But at the same time they have also snubbed quite a few by placing them in the wrong categories.

The men behind it claim that the criteria was different than last year and seniority was given more importance than performance amongst other things.

Whatever it was, some common sense should have prevailed.

There is no reason why a Faisal Iqbal should make Rs 2.1 million a year when there are the likes of Azhar Ali, Nasir Jamshed, Khurram Manzoor, Khalid Latif, and Naumanullah making much less than that.

Azhar Ali has atleast managed to land a Category C contract, as has the talented Umar Amin.

This is the first time that uncapped players have been considered.

They both deserved it.

Azhar Ali, a 23 year old batsman from Lahore had a tremendous last year and first caught the eye when he led the scoring charts during the ABN Amro One Day tournament in early 2008.

He is also among the leading scorers of this season in both the first class and List A competitions.

Azhar averages over 50 in both forms of the game and is a great find for Pakistan. He should make his debut this year and is in my opinion the ideal replacement for Mohammad Yousuf in the test side.

Umar Amin is only 19 and created waves at the under-19 level last season with a couple of centuries in youth tests against England and Bangladesh.

This Rawal Pindi boy is only in his second domestic season and has already given smashing performances with the bat in both first class matches as well as List A games.

He is averaging over 50 in 13 List A games and is only behind Shoaib Malik in terms of runs this season.

Umar has a tremendous future ahead of him and this contract should give him the much needed confidence from the powers that be.

Well sometimes the PCB can make some sense after all.

They also showed some sense in retaining Shoaib Malik as the captain of the team for an indefinite period.

Malik's term had expired at the end of 2008 and there was no reason to replace him and rightly so, the PCB didn't.

Its a new year and the PCB has taken a fresh start. It has made some mistakes but then it has put some things right as well.

Malik's in charge and the men have been identified. Hopefully the international series will take place as well Pakistan will play some cricket.

One can only hope for a good international season for Pakistan.

I have a feeling, it will be just that.

With the recent appointment of Javed Miandad as the Director-General of the PCB and Abdul Qadir as the new Chief Selector, that followed the appointments of Aamir Sohail and Wasim Bari, the PCB is increasingly looking like an ex test team from Pakistan.

Aamir Sohail
Shoaib Mohammad
Ijaz Ahmed
Javed Miandad
Ijaz Butt
Intikhab Alam
Wasim Bari
Abdul Qadir
Saleem Altaf
Aqib Javed
Saleem Jaffar

Two solid openers, 3 good middle order batsmen, a wicket keeper, 2 leg spinners, and 3 pacers - Ijaz Butt has managed the balance of his team perfectly!

I wonder if Ijaz Butt is looking to create a new team for the IPL. Or the ICL maybe?

4-5 more appointments and they could have a full squad of ex players.

When we went to watch the 2nd ODI between Pakistan and the West Indies dressed in white t-shirts with the letters P A K I S T A N painted on them, we also carried with us several banners.

One such banner was this one.

At that time it was something we had talked about, thinking out aloud about who would win and how the players would fare against each other if such a match up ever took place.

With the ICL considered a rebel league and the players taking part in it banned by national boards, none of us really thought such a match would take place.

Though it ran through all our imaginations.

I talked about the two teams, as did Jrod, while NC had a completely different take on it.

Even then, no one really thought it would happen.

Or did we?

Whether we did or not doesn't matter anymore for Inzamam Ul Haq has come out openly and challenged the Pakistan international team to a match.

Pakistan vs Lahore Badshahs!

Inzamam wants it. Yousuf wants it. The Badshahs want it. We want it.

But does the PCB want it?

Will Shoaib Malik accept the challenge?

With Inzamam's recent meetings and conference calls with Ijaz Butt indicating that the bans on Pakistan's ICL players will be lifted, such a match is very much a possibility.

Who do you think will come out on top?

Pakistan or Lahore Badshahs?

Irrespective, I think it will be one charged up contest with a number of players looking to settle some scores.

If you thought the Badshahs vs Heroes game was a heated one, wait till you see this!

Mohammad Yousuf might become the first person to represent the "rebel" ICL as well as his national team at the same time.

On the same day that the PCB selectors announced the 15-man squad for the ODIs against the West Indies in Abu Dhabi, a squad that included Yousuf, the news of him joining the ICL was also revealed.

Yousuf is currently in Delhi and he will be launched by the ICL tomorrow in some kind of unveiling ceremony.

It will be intriguing to see how the PCB will react to this.

Yousuf has never been out of Pakistan's ODI and test plans and he was always going to be selected for the upcoming ODI series and he definitely knew this.

Then what brought about this signing with the ICL?

Obviously the still pending case that has stopped him from appearing in either of the two indian 20-20 leagues.

Its an open secret that Inzamam and Moin Khan had been pushing Yousuf for a long time now, and he finally gave in.

So where does this leave his international career?

I believe Yousuf made this move after gaining consent from the PCB administration, especially Ijaz Butt.

Ijaz Butt's comments last week assured that he would be looking after the Pakistani ICL players and it was widely speculated that he would allow them to play domestic cricket in the near future.

Yousuf in all probability will turn up for the ODIs against the West Indies later this month.

I may be wrong but I have a big hunch that this is what is going to happen. And if it does, it will highlight 3 very important points:

1) There is a future for ICL players in Pakistan's cricket structure;
2) The PCB is no longer going to tow the line of the BCCI;
3) The ICL will release players for national duty when required.

The impact of each is quite significant for the times ahead, but I won't get into that right now.

At this moment, lets just hope that Yousuf becomes the first cricketer to appear in the ICL and his national team without announcing his retirement or getting banned.

I'm dissappointed in myself for not knowing that Lawson's time was up.

I'm dissappointed that I actually trusted what Ijaz Butt said in his 1st press conference.

For a moment I had forgotten that this was Pakistan, where no one sticks to their word. Where everyone says big things to hog the headlines and then forgets about them.

Some people have said to give this new administration some time.

I was doing exactly that when Ijaz Butt said that Lawson would stay till his contract expired and then let go.

Little did I know that Ijaz Butt would make a U-Turn within a week!

So what happened Mr. Butt?

I thought the board had no money to pay off Lawson in case they fired him - where did you get the money suddenly?

When you met him on Friday, you promised to get back to him after discussing certain issues with the board. Instead Lawson heard on TV that he was being fired - what happened to that discussion?

The start of the new Chairman's term has been nothing less than dramatic.

It's as if Chota Rajan has been welcomed by Karachi and he has gone about business by initially getting rid of all of Dawood Ibrahim's men and traces.

In came the new PCB Chairman and out went the COO, the media director, the HR director, the Chief Selector, various other staff members, and now the coach.

Who next?

Now lets hope this Ijaz Butt seriously means business and is not only speaking for the sake of it!

If Ijaz Butt's comments are to be believed, talks of a possible merger between the Indian Premier League and the Indian Cricket League were held during the recently held ICC moot in Dubai.

During that meeting the BCCI was asked to meet the ICL officials to possible come up with a solution regarding the league and its players considered to be rebels.

Ijaz Butt, at his 1st press conference since taking over as PCB Chairman, claimed that a merger was suggested.

Butt has definitely come out with something that was discussed behind closed doors and this would definitely not please the BCCI or the ICC.

At a time when Pakistan cricket requires all the support it can get, Butt cannot afford to get on the wrong side of anyone, let alone the BCCI.

Lalit Modi & Co. are sure to come out with a reaction soon.

And I can almost see the grins on the faces of Subhash Chandra and Kapil Dev.

What I don't understand though is that how can the smartest cricket brains in the world (they should be that if they're heading the national cricket boards) even think about a possible merger between the IPL and the ICL.

A league with 17 teams including multiple teams from the same region hardly sounds feasible.

So why would these so called cricket brains even think of such an idea?

In my view, the simplest solution is to allow the ICL players to play for their regional teams in domestic competitions and also allow them to be considered for international duty.

No one has to do anything more. And I doubt the ICL is looking for anything more. Maybe they want the BCCI's help in gaining access to more grounds and facilities for holding matches and practices, but surely they are not looking for the two leagues to be merged.

So why is the ICC even discussing such a solution?

The best solution, one that I would like to see, is that the bans on the players be lifted and the ICL winners be granted entry into the 20-20 Champions League.

That for me is the ideal scenario. Not an IPCL!

Once the new Chairman, Ijaz Butt, took over the PCB, changes were expected by everyone; however, no one really expected the changes to take place this rapidly.

PCB's management, the selection committee, and the team management have all changed since Ijaz Butt took over, and will continue to do so over the next few months before the big series against India in January 2009.

PCB Management

A number of Nasim Ashraf's yes men have been asked to leave office and more will be doing so in the coming weeks.

Shafqat Naghmi, PCB's Chief Operating Officer, is the latest one to resign from his post. Rumours are however suggesting that Naghmi will not be allowed to leave till an investigation into the PCB's operations under Nasim Ashraf is completed.

The news doing the rounds is that financial irregularities have been discovered and Naghmi along with Nasim Ashraf have been at the centre of them. While Ashraf may be able to escape scott-free, Naghmi would have to bear the brunt.

Salim Altaf, who was fired a few months ago by Nasim Ashraf for leaking news to the media is back in the PCB offices owing to his association with Ijaz Butt.

Salim Altaf has always been involved with Pakistan cricket one way or another, but what he has exactly done during all this time is a question mark. Its also unknown as to in what capacity he has been brought back.

Over the next few weeks, Ijaz Butt is expected to hire a fresh team to manage the PCB including a CEO, COO, and other directors for HR, marketing, media, etc.

This necessarily may not be a bad thing as majority of the management who have been asked to leave were part of the Nasim Ashraf camp, and Ijaz Butt has every right to have a team of his own.

Furthermore, being a former test cricketer, it may also be a good thing that Ijaz Butt is looking to hire professionals with some sort of cricket experience, unlike the administrators and bureaucrats who managed the board under Nasim Ashraf.

Selection Committee

Chief Selector Salahuddin resigned the day after Ijaz Butt took over.

Even though he mentioned that he left because he wanted Ijaz Butt to appoint his own selection committee, the true reasons behind the resignation was the tampering of the squad chosen for the T20 Quadrangular in Canada.

Since then the Sports Ministry has come out and said that a PCB official had asked for a change in the squad, which was approved by the Ministry. Who exactly that official was, we don't know but rest assured he is one of the men who have been asked to leave by Ijaz Butt.

Shagqat Rana, who was part of the selection committee, has also resigned since then, while the 3rd member of the committee, Saleem Jaffar, has been appointed as the Chief Selector by Ijaz Butt.

Jaffar's appointment is however an interim one with his immediate tasks including selecting the squads for the Hong Kong Sixes and the 3 ODIs against the West Indies next month.

It is believed that Ijaz Butt will find a replacement for Jaffar by the end of the year, in time for preparation for the series against India in January.

Former test cricketers Ijaz Ahmed and Shoaib Mohammad have been appointed selectors under Jaffar. Whether they are interim members or permanent is yet unknown.

Once again, a selection committee comprising of former test cricketers can only be a good thing.

Team Management

Manager

Talat Ali, who was the manager of the team for 2 years resigned after the T20 Quadrangular in Canada.

News reports again suggested that Talat Ali resigned with the view that the new Chairman should hire his own team, however a certain controversy on tour in Canada is believed to have resulted in Talat Ali's sacking.

Firstly, Ijaz Butt was never happy with the fact that Talat Ali invited Nasim Ashraf to the team's dug out during the match against Zimbabwe in Canada.

Secondly, some players complained against Talat Ali for not informing them about a particular team dinner that was held for all participants by the hosts in Canada. Half the Pakistan players did not attend because they were not aware of the dinner, while the other half were left embarassed as they were not dresssed appropriately, again because they were not aware.

Sultan Rana and Yawar Saeed have been named as the managers for the Hong Kong Sixes and ODIs against West Indies respectively, while a permanent manager is expected to be named before the end of the year.

Coach

Ijaz Butt openly criticized Geoff Lawson soon after he was appointed as PCB Chairman, which led everyone to believe that Lawson's days were numbered.

I still believe that Lawson's tenure will be over after the ODIs against the Windies, however Lawson in his latest interview thinks otherwise.

There is strong speculation that Waqar Younis will take over as coach before the series against India. Waqar is definitely lobbying for the position and it seems that Ijaz Butt is more in favour of a Pakistani coach rather than a foreign one.

Waqar or no Waqar, Lawson will definitely be going as Ijaz Butt has announced that Lawson's contract will not be renewed when it expires in April 2009. I won't be surprised if he's allowed to leave much before that.

Captain

With the axing of Talat Ali, and the speculation surrounding Lawson, it seemed that Shoaib Malik was living his last few days as Pakistan captain as well.

Misbah, Afridi, Younis were all being rumoured to take over as captain. Besides Misbah, the other two were also heard lobbying for the post and speculation was that one of them would take over by the end of the year when Malik's term expires.

But all that took a back seat after a meeting was held yesterday between the 3 cricket heads - PCB Chairman, Chief Selector, and Captain.

Following the meeting it was concluded that Malik will now have a greater say in squad selection as well as the team composition.

Now that's interesting to say the least. How Malik got his way with Ijaz Butt and Jaffar is still a mystery.

This is a drastic change from the previous policy, where the selection committee had total control over team selection.

How this will change the team comprosition will also be intriguing to witness.

Malik's problems with Afridi and Younis are well documented - will this lead to their axing or will Malik include them despite his differences?

Imran Khan and Wasim Akram showed that a captain with all powers is the way to go in Pakistan, however Inzamam showed why it should never be allowed.

Which way Shoaib Malik will go, we can only speculate right now, but this in no way means that Malik's status as captain following December is secure as Ijaz Butt has stated that Malik's term will be reviewed once the current one ends.


Thus come the series against India and Pakistan could be taking the field under a new man.

Time will only tell whether these changes will bring about a change in fortunes for the Pakistan team or not, but one thing is definite - Ijaz Butt is here with a plan and that plan has kicked off with operation Clean Up.

This week has been an eventful one for Pakistan cricket.

In the span of 2 days one witnessed the Law Minister holding a meeting with 5 leading cricketers, the announcement of Pakistan's squad for the 20-20 quadrangular in Canada, the announcement of a new PCB Chairman, and the resignation of the Chief Selector.

Were all these events connected to each other?

As news reports would tell you, they most definitely were.

But there's more to it than meets the eye.

The appointment of Ijaz Butt was expected months ago. Cricket Files and Leg Slip had both discussed it in August soon after Nasim Ashraf's resignation.

Then why did it take so long for the announcement to be made public?

Why did Najamuddin Khan, the Sports Minister, and Farooq Naek, the Law Minister, get involved in these cricket politics?

Why did Salahuddin Ahmed resign as soon as the Pakistan team for Canada was announced?

Who inducted Shoaib Khan into the squad instead of Saeed Ajmal?

Who included Khalid Latif in the squad in place of Nasir Jamshed?

Who picked 6 fast bowlers and no spinners in the 15 man squad?

Why was the issue of Shoaib Akhtar's fine ignored all of a sudden?

Were Mohammad Yousuf's and Yasir Arafat's visas for Canada really rejected?

Why haven't Saleem Jaffar and Shafqat Rana, the other 2 selectors, resigned?

Why did Saleem Altaf, who had been sacked by Nasim Ashraf, accompany Ijaz Butt to the press conference?

Why is the Pakistan media projecting an amicable resignation, while Cricinfo is reporting one done through disgust?

There is a lot happening behind the scenes in Pakistan and I don't have the answers to a lot of these questions. But I sure do want to know.

Probably more stories will come out in the open over the next few days.

Either way I am sure to have more answers than questions after the weekend.

Pakistan also begins its T20 quadrangular campaign tomorrow against Canada followed by matches against Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe on the next 2 days. I will cover this after the weekend as well.

Till then...