How can cricket be made an elite upper class sport in Pakistan again?

[Savak]

Mamoon made an interesting point about one of the main reasons for the demise of Pakistan Cricket was the fact the sport no longer attracts the upper class, upper middle class, middle class, educated segments of our society as it once did during the 50's to 70's when you had people like Kardar, Hanif Muhammad, Mushtaq Muhammad, Fazal Mahmood, Imran Khan, Majid Khan, Asif Iqbal etc players who were larger than life characters and bought about a great deal of swagger.

Sure we have had some noticeable exceptions to an extent in the form of Saeed Anwar, Aamir Sohail, Ramiz Raja, Misbah ul Haq, Salman Butt, Shan Masood but overall compared to our parosi's our players come from too humble a background and lack that worldwide orientation to enable them to understand their potential, manage and maximize their talent, adopt a world class work ethic.

Would love to hear [MENTION=131701]Mamoon[/MENTION] recommendations.

 

[TM Riddle]

This would be a step backwards. It worked in the past because the competition from other countries was less. What PCB should do instead is looking for establishing academies in small towns and with PSL up and running it shouldn't be hard turning Cricket into a viable financial career once again.
For instance in India , most of the cricketers these days are emerging from tier 2/3 cities with middle class background.

 

[MenInG]

Nonsense.

Elite = moneyed-class in Pakistan.

You would like more people to play in Pakistan and not a select few.

If you want educated people playing then get your school systems in order and not try and get people from select rich backgrounds playing this game.

 

[Shandarchowka]

Ideally we want the sport to be played by people from all backgrounds. Why do you want to restrict it to the elite? Wouldn’t that be regressive? Champions trophy was won by Fakhar, Shady, Hasan, Amir.. these are not ‘elite’ players..

 

[Bhaijaan]

You could not get more ignorant than that.

The very reason Indian cricket has flourished in last 20 years is because of it finally spreading to tier-2, tier-3 cities and rural areas.

 

[someone21]

You could not get more ignorant than that.

The very reason Indian cricket has flourished in last 20 years is because of it finally spreading to tier-2, tier-3 cities and rural areas.

Actually its IPL, the key reason why small town players get a chance

 

[Swashbuckler]

Disagree with OP, making it an upper class sport will only kill cricket in Pakistan.

 

[Greenstorm]

Elite is more involved in laundering money into foreign accounts, bad mouthing their own country and its patriots(specially Army and Imran). Why will they be bothered about Cricket ?

Inzamam, Waqar, Wasim, Shoaib Akhter, Saqlain didn't came from elite upper class but they had their own swag and presence. Imran was from the elite but his tribal background helped him to relate with players from less privileged class (he used to communicate in Punjabi with paindus in his team).

Demise of Pakistan cricket is due to deterioration of domestic system and not because of non involvement of elite.

 

[JibranAnsari]

Its true that cricket is losing popularity in pakistan , especially test cricket , but the interest is directly proportional to the performance on field. After winning champions trophy pakistan had a very good chance of building on to that win but instead no planning went in. The op probably meant that the 'elite class' too needs to take interest in the game , its quite true that these days most cricketers are emerging from humble backgrounds. To allure people from all segments of society the FC cricket needs to be a little bit more attractive.

 

[aukhan]

Middle class families will force their kid to focus on studies instead of playing cricket and to be very fair you can't blame them for this. The system is corrupt from top to bottom, why would you want your kid to waste his important teenage years playing cricket when there is no proper structure or career trajectory in Pakistan.

Your career is short and the paycheck in domestic is equally worse if you somehow make it there. If you look at the top domestic performers then you would feel sorry for them. Their only chance of making a comfortable living after so many years of hard work and struggle is playing for Pakistan only. Until the corrupt domestic/regional system is changed and more money is poured in at domestic level, i don't see middle class families allowing their kids to take cricket as a profession. The perfect example is India's domestic cricket. They pay enough money to their players to live a comfortable quality life beyond their retirement.

Mamoon's point makes sense though.

 

[gibsyhesperis]

This would be extremely regressive.
In essence, this is what has happened to cricket in the UK.
I saw an interesting analysis of test cricketers who have played for England in the last twenty years -- the majority fell into one of three groups. Either they were privately educated, had a father or uncle who had played first class cricket or were from Yorkshire or Lancashire.
Pretty much restricts the pool.
It will be interesting to see if kids from Asian backgrounds will change this trend.
Societies should strive to provide opportunities for all, not restrict this to elites (so-called....)

 

[angrypathan]

By paying domestic cricketers handsomely and making it an attractive option for someone who is educated and has other career options at his disposal

 

[Fahdi]

The OP probably means how to get the upper class involved in cricket as well, not make it an exclusively elite sport.

For that to happen we would need:

a) FC cricket to become well paying.

b) University cricket.

The upper middle and elite class aren't going to throw away promising careers as Doctors, Lawyers, Engineers etc. to play cricket unless they can get a good education along with it. To attract this class towards taking sports as a career a sports culture needs to be cultivated in universities. There needs to be sports scholarships and universities need to build serious teams with proper competitive tournaments. At the moment students who play sports do it just for fun mostly and would never sacrifice their education too much for it because they know it's not a viable career option.

Secondly the pay of FC cricketers needs to improve significantly. The PSL can help in this regard but the culling of dead weight in the system is also needed. Instead of having dozens of low quality and poorly paid teams it's better to have 9-10 competitive teams with good pay and facilities.

The way to go should be that FC teams pick university students direct from their varsities. Those who aren't able to make the cut can just take their degrees and have a career.

But these schemes are a long way off unless the situation of the country improves significantly. That isn't going to happen for the next few years at the very least.

 

[Mamoon]

I think people have missed the point. Cricket does not have to become a sport that is exclusive to the elite class, but it should also not become a sport that is exclusive to the opposite spectrum.

The only solution to this problem is to invest heavily in school cricket. The top schools in the country such as Beaconhouse, City School, Karachi Grammar/Lahore Grammar, Aitchison (which has a great cricketing heritage already) as well as various colleges and universities need to provide scholarships to budding cricketers, as well as provide proper facilities and opportunities to the students who have a passion to play the game.

With the way things are, it is practically impossible for a kid for an affluent, educated family to take up cricket. He will simply not be able to juggle it with his education. He will have to enrol into a club and play on weekends, and his school would not give him any leeway or encourage his career.

The chances of playing international cricket for Pakistan are very, very low. Not many people are prepared to give up steady careers and risk everything to fulfil their dream. However, by involving institutes and encouraging them to focus on cricket as well, kids will be able to pursue cricket along with their education and will have something to fall back on if they do not excel.

Not only would this widen Pakistan's talent pool, it will also ensure that we produce cricketers with charismatic personalities, good communication skills and players with good social awareness. Our players today have had very little exposure, very little formal education and that is why they are out of their depth with their newfound fame.

Not only do they act like fools on social media, they don't know how to behave around people either and have the intelligence of what to say and what not to say. For reference, I would say that we need to produce cricketers who have personalities similar to our showbiz stars. People like Fawad Khan, Humayun Saeed, Mikaal Zulfiqar, Hamza Abbasi, Ali Zafar etc. Not all of them have Masters or PhDs, but they have strong family backgrounds, decent education and have had good exposure before getting into showbiz which is why they know how to carry themselves.

Pakistan cricket needs such personalties. It doesn't mean that folks like Sarfraz, Hasan, Yasir etc. cannot play for Pakistan. Of course they can, but we also need some diversity. At the moment, there is no diversity at all and the likes of Masood, Malik etc. are very rare, and the latter was polished by Sania Mirza.

Pakistan cricket needs more players with star quality, good communication skills, a sense of how to carry themselves and not call every senior player and Hashim Amla "bhai". Not be star-struck and easily intimidated and have the ability to sledge and respond to sledging.

 

[Sher Khan]

I think people have missed the point. Cricket does not have to become a sport that is exclusive to the elite class, but it should also not become a sport that is exclusive to the opposite spectrum.

The only solution to this problem is to invest heavily in school cricket. The top schools in the country such as Beaconhouse, City School, Karachi Grammar/Lahore Grammar, Aitchison (which has a great cricketing heritage already) as well as various colleges and universities need to provide scholarships to budding cricketers, as well as provide proper facilities and opportunities to the students who have a passion to play the game.

With the way things are, it is practically impossible for a kid for an affluent, educated family to take up cricket. He will simply not be able to juggle it with his education. He will have to enrol into a club and play on weekends, and his school would not give him any leeway or encourage his career.

The chances of playing international cricket for Pakistan are very, very low. Not many people are prepared to give up steady careers and risk everything to fulfil their dream. However, by involving institutes and encouraging them to focus on cricket as well, kids will be able to pursue cricket along with their education and will have something to fall back on if they do not excel.

Not only would this widen Pakistan's talent pool, it will also ensure that we produce cricketers with charismatic personalities, good communication skills and players with good social awareness. Our players today have had very little exposure, very little formal education and that is why they are out of their depth with their newfound fame.

Not only do they act like fools on social media, they don't know how to behave around people either and have the intelligence of what to say and what not to say. For reference, I would say that we need to produce cricketers who have personalities similar to our showbiz stars. People like Fawad Khan, Humayun Saeed, Mikaal Zulfiqar, Hamza Abbasi, Ali Zafar etc. Not all of them have Masters or PhDs, but they have strong family backgrounds, decent education and have had good exposure before getting into showbiz which is why they know how to carry themselves.

Pakistan cricket needs such personalties. It doesn't mean that folks like Sarfraz, Hasan, Yasir etc. cannot play for Pakistan. Of course they can, but we also need some diversity. At the moment, there is no diversity at all and the likes of Masood, Malik etc. are very rare, and the latter was polished by Sania Mirza.

Pakistan cricket needs more players with star quality, good communication skills, a sense of how to carry themselves and not call every senior player and Hashim Amla "bhai". Not be star-struck and easily intimidated and have the ability to sledge and respond to sledging.

Good point. Their is a real dearth of presentable characters in the current team. Whilst it is heart warming to see kids off the streets make it into international cricket. The fact is after reaching the international stage, these cricketers lose the desire to further improve on their skills and are content with what they have achieved.

If you see the examples of Shan masood, Salman butt, and misbah. They all had one thing in common. They worked hard to improve themselves despite not being the most talented. They also developed their understanding of the game. Of course all three, were presentable and talked well.

 

[barah_admi]

Ridiculous thread.

The spread of the sport into every corner of Pakistan has helped the team immeasurably, how elite was Miandad, Waqar, Akhtar, Inzy, Yousuf (the man lived next to a railway line), Younis, Ajmal, Shah?

You guys are reaching a new low on here.

 

[topspin]

First step is making cricket secular. We've seen a fair deal of damage to the Pakistan side during the 2000s because of this and unfortunately some of practices have yet to be rooted out.

Cricket needs to be open to elite and educated players simply because the players Pakistan produces today are not leaders but a bunch of meek and timid individuals who look so lost they have no idea how to handle the limelight - as highlighted by Mamoon in re: Babar's twitter response to Zainab.

The players we see being produced don't inspire anyone because they bring their gully mohalla mindset and approach on the field and in the media - Sarfraz is the prime example of this. Even the most talented players in the side like Shafiq are too timid to establish just a decent test career.

Other issues that we are seeing is the lack of drive and hunger in our cricketers. It's unfortunate that just a small taste of success is all it takes to get to their heads, so they stop working on their game and developing.

Widening access to the game reaps benefits in India because the literacy rates are very good compared to Pakistan. If the India side was comprised of the same background as their neighbours there would be serious shortcomings but not to the same extent as Pakistan because of the greater scale of BCCI's resources and investment in their players.

No one is saying their should be a preference for elite cricketers, what I'm saying is we need a balance of raw talent led by natural leaders from more elite backgrounds to guide the team in the right direction. Lets not forget the 90s side was a product of Imran Khan.

 

[topspin]

i think people have missed the point. Cricket does not have to become a sport that is exclusive to the elite class, but it should also not become a sport that is exclusive to the opposite spectrum.

The only solution to this problem is to invest heavily in school cricket. The top schools in the country such as beaconhouse, city school, karachi grammar/lahore grammar, aitchison (which has a great cricketing heritage already) as well as various colleges and universities need to provide scholarships to budding cricketers, as well as provide proper facilities and opportunities to the students who have a passion to play the game.

With the way things are, it is practically impossible for a kid for an affluent, educated family to take up cricket. He will simply not be able to juggle it with his education. He will have to enrol into a club and play on weekends, and his school would not give him any leeway or encourage his career.

The chances of playing international cricket for pakistan are very, very low. Not many people are prepared to give up steady careers and risk everything to fulfil their dream. However, by involving institutes and encouraging them to focus on cricket as well, kids will be able to pursue cricket along with their education and will have something to fall back on if they do not excel.

Not only would this widen pakistan's talent pool, it will also ensure that we produce cricketers with charismatic personalities, good communication skills and players with good social awareness. Our players today have had very little exposure, very little formal education and that is why they are out of their depth with their newfound fame.

Not only do they act like fools on social media, they don't know how to behave around people either and have the intelligence of what to say and what not to say. For reference, i would say that we need to produce cricketers who have personalities similar to our showbiz stars. People like fawad khan, humayun saeed, mikaal zulfiqar, hamza abbasi, ali zafar etc. Not all of them have masters or phds, but they have strong family backgrounds, decent education and have had good exposure before getting into showbiz which is why they know how to carry themselves.

Pakistan cricket needs such personalties. It doesn't mean that folks like sarfraz, hasan, yasir etc. Cannot play for pakistan. Of course they can, but we also need some diversity. At the moment, there is no diversity at all and the likes of masood, malik etc. Are very rare, and the latter was polished by sania mirza.

Pakistan cricket needs more players with star quality, good communication skills, a sense of how to carry themselves and not call every senior player and hashim amla "bhai". Not be star-struck and easily intimidated and have the ability to sledge and respond to sledging.

potw

 

[latecut]

Upper class people should place sports (and excel in them ) that are played seriously all over the world not just in a few countries. For example Track and field, Football, Tennis etc. It applies for all cricket playing Asian countries.

 

[Cpt. Rishwat]

The sport just needs to become professionalised at domestic level, then all these other factors like education and family background would become incidental. Professional sport is a big money spinner so cricket's popularity should be monetised much more effectively like it is in India. But the roots have to be in domestic cricket, and that is where Pakistan has never shown any genuine interest before IPL showed what was possible.

 

[SportsWarrior]

Ideally we want the sport to be played by people from all backgrounds. Why do you want to restrict it to the elite? Wouldn’t that be regressive? Champions trophy was won by Fakhar, Shady, Hasan, Amir.. these are not ‘elite’ players..

If I read [MENTION=131701]Mamoon[/MENTION] 's orginal post he was not excluding the others. He was lamenting that the elite class is no more playing cricket in pakistan.

 

[Hawkeye]

I think people have missed the point. Cricket does not have to become a sport that is exclusive to the elite class, but it should also not become a sport that is exclusive to the opposite spectrum.

The only solution to this problem is to invest heavily in school cricket. The top schools in the country such as Beaconhouse, City School, Karachi Grammar/Lahore Grammar, Aitchison (which has a great cricketing heritage already) as well as various colleges and universities need to provide scholarships to budding cricketers, as well as provide proper facilities and opportunities to the students who have a passion to play the game.

With the way things are, it is practically impossible for a kid for an affluent, educated family to take up cricket. He will simply not be able to juggle it with his education. He will have to enrol into a club and play on weekends, and his school would not give him any leeway or encourage his career.

The chances of playing international cricket for Pakistan are very, very low. Not many people are prepared to give up steady careers and risk everything to fulfil their dream. However, by involving institutes and encouraging them to focus on cricket as well, kids will be able to pursue cricket along with their education and will have something to fall back on if they do not excel.

Not only would this widen Pakistan's talent pool, it will also ensure that we produce cricketers with charismatic personalities, good communication skills and players with good social awareness. Our players today have had very little exposure, very little formal education and that is why they are out of their depth with their newfound fame.

Not only do they act like fools on social media, they don't know how to behave around people either and have the intelligence of what to say and what not to say. For reference, I would say that we need to produce cricketers who have personalities similar to our showbiz stars. People like Fawad Khan, Humayun Saeed, Mikaal Zulfiqar, Hamza Abbasi, Ali Zafar etc. Not all of them have Masters or PhDs, but they have strong family backgrounds, decent education and have had good exposure before getting into showbiz which is why they know how to carry themselves.

Pakistan cricket needs such personalties. It doesn't mean that folks like Sarfraz, Hasan, Yasir etc. cannot play for Pakistan. Of course they can, but we also need some diversity. At the moment, there is no diversity at all and the likes of Masood, Malik etc. are very rare, and the latter was polished by Sania Mirza.

Pakistan cricket needs more players with star quality, good communication skills, a sense of how to carry themselves and not call every senior player and Hashim Amla "bhai". Not be star-struck and easily intimidated and have the ability to sledge and respond to sledging.

Definitely another POTW.

Deserving for this.

Middle to elite class NEEDS to start playing cricket. Currently it is exclusive to rural/lower class. Which has regressed PAK cricket.

Entire educated class is missing from cricket. They need to be included, as well as the rural class.

 

[Kroll]

The only thing that should matter is the hunger and desire of the individual to succeed - not the bank balance.

 

[Shaka81]

Why not try to create an American style sports scholarship program for entry into elite colleges and universities if kids show sporting talent. It would attract more people to take up sport in general, help with social mobility and improve access to education.... surely a win win situation!

 

[shariqnoor]

Have said it multiple times on this forum that Pakistan needs educated people in the team. Education fuels critical thinking and the ability to gain match awareness. One of the biggest problems in the Pakistan team is that no one understands match awareness. And unfortunately for these Pakistani cricketers, match awareness is not a science that can be drilled into their heads. Every situation is different and players have to adapt themselves to it in seconds on the field. At the very least, your captain needs to be educated and polished as he's the principal decision maker on the field.

However, you don't need to make cricket exclusively an upper elite class sport. Middle class people are also well educated and will do well with the thought process that is required in cricket. Cricket is fast becoming a mental game and you need players who understand the psychology of the game. Imam I believe has studied in the Beaconhouse school system and also enrolled in O'levels and it shows. He has some technical problems but mental strength is one facet that he does not seem to struggle in. You need more players like that.

 

[Rana]

OP has not argued that the sport should only belong to the elite class, he is arguing that it should once again appeal to them.

He is correct as well. What is unfortunate is the fact that the upper class/private schools such as Aitchinson college are charging a considerable amount of money to the families yet they really are not producing enough quality first class/International cricketers. Schools as such should be able to employ former internationals in their coaching systems.

The guys that graduate through a private school system in England/Australia/ South Africa are a gulf in difference when it comes to quality and personality as compared to the kids from an urbanised background.

 

[jaguarjack]

Mamoon made an interesting point about one of the main reasons for the demise of Pakistan Cricket was the fact the sport no longer attracts the upper class, upper middle class, middle class, educated segments of our society as it once did during the 50's to 70's when you had people like Kardar, Hanif Muhammad, Mushtaq Muhammad, Fazal Mahmood, Imran Khan, Majid Khan, Asif Iqbal etc players who were larger than life characters and bought about a great deal of swagger.

Sure we have had some noticeable exceptions to an extent in the form of Saeed Anwar, Aamir Sohail, Ramiz Raja, Misbah ul Haq, Salman Butt, Shan Masood but overall compared to our parosi's our players come from too humble a background and lack that worldwide orientation to enable them to understand their potential, manage and maximize their talent, adopt a world class work ethic.

Would love to hear [MENTION=131701]Mamoon[/MENTION] recommendations.

pretty sure most of the current Indian players have very humble background as well... Off the top of my head I can only think of KL Rahul (both parents are professors) as having privileged upbringing.

Bumrah's father died when he was very young. Raised by single mother.. school principal
Prithvi Shaw's mom died at young age.. looking at the apartment he was living in (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhhYFlWMx7M), that can't be called upper class.
And we all know about Kohli.

 

[topspin]

OP has not argued that the sport should only belong to the elite class, he is arguing that it should once again appeal to them.

He is correct as well. What is unfortunate is the fact that the upper class/private schools such as Aitchinson college are charging a considerable amount of money to the families yet they really are not producing enough quality first class/International cricketers. Schools as such should be able to employ former internationals in their coaching systems.

The guys that graduate through a private school system in England/Australia/ South Africa are a gulf in difference when it comes to quality and personality as compared to the kids from an urbanised background.

Absolutely and the gulf is even greater in Pakistan which is why it's imperative Pakistan is able to find more cricketers from such backgrounds.

 

[Extra_Cover]

I understand where the OP is coming from however they way he presented his point may not be very articulate.

In my personal opinion the difference between an educated cricketer and an uneducated one is the level of competitiveness and mentality in approach to the game. For example, 2 cricketers of same overall ability enter u19 arena. Once they reach fame and ultimately represent Pakistan in international circuit the uneducated one will start to putting in less hardwork and bask in newly earned fame. Please note the educated one will also do the same at this point.

Now a couple of years after they became a household name their performances start to dip leading them to be dropped from the team. The uneducated one will still hold his head high as he has achieved what he wanted to achieved in his peer group (uneducated peer group). On the other hand at this point the educated one will re-assess his career and take two options either find potential in himself to continue playing cricket and therefore put in more hardwork and improve or he will leave cricket altogether and chose a different path.

Ultimate examples on PP are Umar Akmal and Shan Masood. Akmal has already achieved what he wanted in his peer group and going by his focuses in day to day life its easy to imagine that he would not have any successful career ahead as he would not be putting in extra hours, thats just his mentality and neither he nor any fan on PP can change that for him. Now, Shan Masood on other hand however limited his strokeplay is at the moment, one thing we can say that in next couple of years he will only improve this is because the guy will still be putting in necessary hours to improve his game. Shan if he averages around 40 this year likely will be averaging around 45 in next two years and then would decline as everyone does with age.

My concern at the moment are Hasan Ali, Shadab Khan, Fahim Ashraf and Fakhar Zaman. These guys fall in the bracket of uneducated folks who has achieved success recently for Pakistan. In next couple of years we will figure out their mentality and attitude towards the game. I hope the bunch I mentioned is a hard working bunch if not we would be seeing them regress fairly quickly and they would not be able to recover from that.

 

[Savak]

I understand where the OP is coming from however they way he presented his point may not be very articulate.

In my personal opinion the difference between an educated cricketer and an uneducated one is the level of competitiveness and mentality in approach to the game. For example, 2 cricketers of same overall ability enter u19 arena. Once they reach fame and ultimately represent Pakistan in international circuit the uneducated one will start to putting in less hardwork and bask in newly earned fame. Please note the educated one will also do the same at this point.

Now a couple of years after they became a household name their performances start to dip leading them to be dropped from the team. The uneducated one will still hold his head high as he has achieved what he wanted to achieved in his peer group (uneducated peer group). On the other hand at this point the educated one will re-assess his career and take two options either find potential in himself to continue playing cricket and therefore put in more hardwork and improve or he will leave cricket altogether and chose a different path.

Ultimate examples on PP are Umar Akmal and Shan Masood. Akmal has already achieved what he wanted in his peer group and going by his focuses in day to day life its easy to imagine that he would not have any successful career ahead as he would not be putting in extra hours, thats just his mentality and neither he nor any fan on PP can change that for him. Now, Shan Masood on other hand however limited his strokeplay is at the moment, one thing we can say that in next couple of years he will only improve this is because the guy will still be putting in necessary hours to improve his game. Shan if he averages around 40 this year likely will be averaging around 45 in next two years and then would decline as everyone does with age.

My concern at the moment are Hasan Ali, Shadab Khan, Fahim Ashraf and Fakhar Zaman. These guys fall in the bracket of uneducated folks who has achieved success recently for Pakistan. In next couple of years we will figure out their mentality and attitude towards the game. I hope the bunch I mentioned is a hard working bunch if not we would be seeing them regress fairly quickly and they would not be able to recover from that.

The other issue with the young players who come from humble backgrounds is the pressure of having to be responsible for all of their families who would have seen a massive uplift in their lifestyle. Akhtar mentioned this in his autobiography that the stress of having to maintain their spots in the team, losing their spots in the team results in players taking Xanax at night on tour. When these players have these things to worry about, I doubt they can focus on their business at hand in a kind of a relaxed, focused manner as the manner in which Kohli does for e.g. because he has probably made so much money that even if he stops playing cricket or earning from cricket, he would have other options and is set for life.

Similarly Shan Masood already has a university education and comes from a decently well of background, he can afford to play his game in a relaxed manner with less pressures and things to worry about at night as he knows that if Cricket does not work out, he has other decent options in Life. This is why having University level education can remove this fear of what will happen to us if we get dropped, if our cricketing careers don't work out from the players.

 

[The Viper]

Having somebody educated representing Pak in press conferences would be nice. Sarfaraz unfortunately stumbles over his words and repeats the same stuff most of the time,

 

[Rana]

What I believe is that a school like Aitchinson should have enough appeal and funds to hire ICC, ECB level 3-4 coaches with a first class cricketing background as the coaching staff for cricket exactly as it is in all Private schools in England, Australia and South Africa. It seems like these schools don’t believe in sports scholarships, so they really need to identify their young talent from an early age and ensure that the parents allow these boys to develop their skills as pro cricketers. They must set up tour plans and academies for them with MCC young cricketers.

Top schools in Lahore and Karachi must have grounds that are English first class standard and a facility for PCB to use as a training academy for its own developmental players. This is exactly what MCC and Middlesex does with private schools such as Merchant Taylors.

 

[PakLFC]

Win a few matches so that interest is reignited. Currently people seem to be losing interest in the game.

 

[latecut]

People may begin from humble background, but once they rise up as a result of their success in cricket, they should be able to handle their success and do the transition into the league of the elite in a smooth and dignified way.

When I look at the Indian captains beginning from late 1970s, I find that they were either from elite background, or they became elite as a result of their success in the game. Here are the Indian captains:

MAK Pataudi- He was an elite by birth.

Ajit Wadekar- A middle class upbringing. People know his as the first successful captain of India, but few people know that he rose to the top in his job as well. He joined banking service and rose to the top.

Sunil Gavaskar-Middle class upbringing. Became a legend and part of elite society as a result of his success in cricket.

Sachin Tendulkar- Middle class upbringing. Became a legend and part of elite society as a result of his success in cricket. Lacked the leadership quality of Gavaskar though.

Saurav Ganguly- Born into an elite family. Was a "quota" selection from east zone. He proved that a cricketer from East Zone could also become an international cricketer. Once his credentials were established, he found himself becoming the captain of Indian team. Brought the much needed steel in the team.

M S Dhoni- Also from east zone, but from a humble background. Once he established his credentials, he made the transition from the humble economic status to elite status with aplomb. He took Indian cricket to new level from where Ganguly had left it. Dhoni in a way represented the aspirations of low middle class Indians from small non metro places.

Virat Kohli- Middle class North Indian background. Beneficiary of the cricket system established by his predecessors. Like his predecessor Dhonui, he too transitioned from a humble background to elite of society with aplomb.

I find that all these cricketers with modest bakgrounds had got middle class upbringing and good mentors to guide them. Some, who lacked such mentors (such as Kambli) fell away. But overall, Indian cricketers with modest backgrounds have grown well as cricketers and well as mature humans after their success in cricket. Personally I am quite impressed by the way these cricketers speak in front of media. One can see that they are committed towards some goals and they know how to achieve them. They also have the confidence that they have the support of those who matter.

So, in summary, there is a well oiled system in place that is throwing up these cricketers. Like common people, these cricketers are rising up the economic ladder through hard work in a sustainable manner.

 

[latecut]

I forgot to add Kapildev's name to the above list. He was the most influential cricketer in the history of Indian cricket, but that was inadvertent, not by any conscious planning.

 

[Ahmed216]

Most people like to credit dhonis and gangulys for improvements in Indian cricket but in my opinion it was economic reforms of 90's that resulted in India's rise.
Likes of prithvi shaw and shubman gill may already have earned more than some of paks national team superstars.

 

[Savak]

Shan Masood's development is a prime example of how having an educated, upper class orientation helps an individual in the long run. Masood took responsibility for his failures and critically examined where he went wrong, what he needed to do to get to the next level and he took it upon himself to go to England, spend his own personal funds to find lodging for himself, work with Alaister Cook's coach batting in the nets, practicing for 3 plus hours daily till things just became permanently entrenched in his muscle memory. This is a guy who has also obtained a sports management degree which he pursue via online correspondence while he was playing cricket on the side. You can check from his Instagram handle as to how he keeps himself super fit daily and monitors his diet. This guy also gets along extremely well with foreign players. Sure people can say he had a privileged background which he utilized to his advantage.

In contrast, Umar Akmal has been playing for Pakistan Cricket for ten long years, he managed to earn a lot of money and given his elder brother too played a lot of cricket, i am assuming the family didn't really have any money problems. I believe both the Akmal brothers have heavily invested in real estate and shopping plazas. What is stopping Umar Akmal from taking initiative, ownership of his career, batting and fitness, getting on a plane, working privately with a batting coach in England to iron out flaws?

Just look at the Youtube videos of Virat Kohli having 1-1 interviews with Max Graham, Adam Gilchrist, Viv Richards. In contrast can you even picture someone like Umar Akmal in the same scenario and how he would be able to handle himself in the presence of these people. This is a guy who inspite of playing for Pakistan for 10 years still cannot speak English properly and he choose to go into a serious anti corruption hearing on which his entire career was hinging without a lawyer and choose to represent himself. This is a guy to whom his PCB Chairman is explaining to him extremely empathetically and with concern to get his epileptic condition taken care of by medical professionals before returning back to the game and he acts defensive not even understanding the problem.

We need more Shan Masood's in the team to progress as a cricketing nation.

 

[MenInG]

So we wish to shut down the "masses" like Babar Azam and work on Shan Masood types?

 

[Savak]

So we wish to shut down the "masses" like Babar Azam and work on Shan Masood types?

Its about uplifting the standards and quality of players being produced on and off the field.

 

[sweep_shot]

Cricket should be open to all classes. Anyone who is capable (whether upper-class or lower-class) should get opportunity.

Just because someone is from upper-class doesn't automatically mean he will do the right thing.

 

[Titan24]

I once created a thread that will we ever produce another cricketing personality like Imran Khan, my point was regarding certain level of personality, maturity and leadership qualities alongside obvious cricketing skills. There is absolutely no doubt cricket should be played by everyone and anyone who has the skills and passion should be able to progress in the sport.

Cricket in Pakistan has grown to more areas now than it was in 80s, 90s where certain areas and cities were the main production hub of cricketers which has been a really good thing.

However, at the same time schools, collages and universities have gone mostly out of that picture and there is some unthinkable amount of talent that we are loosing there with no proper road map for students who want to continue studies alongside their cricket as not everybody can take risk of choosing one of both. Some other countries are handling that talent better I guess.

Hopefully better cricket system is soon made for schools, collages and universities. I want to see extreme talents from villages as well as from educational institutes, we have covered the rural areas part pretty well in last couple of decades but cricket in educational institutions needs to be revived.

I cant imagine how much talent we will have at our hands with cricket in educational institutions back as a career with proper road map now that we have already established roots in rural areas as well. Somebody who is really good at studies and at the same time exceptional at cricket should be getting equal opportunities without having to completely forgo his cricket or studies at a young age.

 

[Watsupdoc]

Wasn’t Salman Butt from the upper class as well?

 

[Asifnow]

huuuuuuh? Make it more upper class? Some of Pakistan's greatest ever cricketers have come from poorer backgrounds, in fact I'd wager more of their greats have been from sub middle class backgrounds than middle or upper. Imran Khan and his family and cricketers from the 50s-70s are a rarity. I'd only really label a few of them as great.

Three of Pakistan's best batsmen, Yusuf, Miandad and Khan came from poorer backgrounds. Yusuf lived near a railway track didnt he? Akhtar, Waqar and Wasim werent exactly privileged. I dont even think they were properly educated. Moin, Rashid et al the same. Not sure which Eton college Babar went to or which Cambridge Shaheen has popped out of lol

This is such a weird thread....in England people are worried the sport will die because it is too elite and yall in Pakistan want to kill it by making it elite?

 

[Savak]

The point of this thread is to encourage diversity in the team and to encourage more educated, middle class people to take up the sport who can promote Pakistan in a positive light. Enough of Sarfaraz type paindus in the team

 

[Savak]

huuuuuuh? Make it more upper class? Some of Pakistan's greatest ever cricketers have come from poorer backgrounds, in fact I'd wager more of their greats have been from sub middle class backgrounds than middle or upper. Imran Khan and his family and cricketers from the 50s-70s are a rarity. I'd only really label a few of them as great.

Three of Pakistan's best batsmen, Yusuf, Miandad and Khan came from poorer backgrounds. Yusuf lived near a railway track didnt he? Akhtar, Waqar and Wasim werent exactly privileged. I dont even think they were properly educated. Moin, Rashid et al the same. Not sure which Eton college Babar went to or which Cambridge Shaheen has popped out of lol

This is such a weird thread....in England people are worried the sport will die because it is too elite and yall in Pakistan want to kill it by making it elite?

Lol, Yousaf's lack of education reflects in his post match analysis and the way he expresses his opinions on players, he may know a lot about batting but it is negated by the fact he struggles to communicate his thoughts and knowledge professionally. His lack of education and grooming also reflects in the fact that he does not understand that getting roles in the PCB or coaching gigs also entails inter personal skills, developing relationships and trust with people, net working skills and its not only about you being a legendary cricketer only. Miandad faced the same problems himself and when he finally got a leadership role in the PCB for 5-6 years, he did nothing but cost the PCB Rs 100 million and did not deliver even 1% of value to the PCB and the cause of Pakistan Cricket during his stint.

Waqar and Wasim benefited from county cricket and the fact they were extremely open to interact with gora players, embrace their culture and eventually they were able to uplift their personalities and because of the manner in which they developed their grooming over the years in addition to their legendary status in the game enabled them to be in demand by broadcasters and T-20 leagues as coaches.

 

[Savak]

The PCB needs to sign partnerships with the top O, A level schools, inter, fsc schools, universities in the country where highly talented youngsters can join the NCA and the PCB can then create opportunities for these kids to play for the U16, U19 team, A team, PSL sides, Regional sides or club teams and the institutes these kids come from will facilitate these kids by allowing them to pursue coursework online.

 

[Savak]

Timely bump given the debate on Babar Azam's English, Lack of personality in the field. Shan Masood when he led in the PSL had presence in the field.

 

[Bhaijaan]

Timely bump given the debate on Babar Azam's English, Lack of personality in the field. Shan Masood when he led in the PSL had presence in the field.

Which is why I had asked what's the status in tje other thread. Those of you who are listening to pressers and interviews, is there improvement.

Many desi cricketers didn't start of of being fluent in English but they improved.

Kapil, Waqar, Harbhajan etc they all can speak well now. When they started they were scared to even talk.

 

[topspin]

Which is why I had asked what's the status in tje other thread. Those of you who are listening to pressers and interviews, is there improvement.

Many desi cricketers didn't start of of being fluent in English but they improved.

Kapil, Waqar, Harbhajan etc they all can speak well now. When they started they were scared to even talk.

Not sure about Kapil but Waqar and Harbhajan still have broken English.

 

[Thunderbolt14]

Which is why I had asked what's the status in tje other thread. Those of you who are listening to pressers and interviews, is there improvement.

Many desi cricketers didn't start of of being fluent in English but they improved.

Kapil, Waqar, Harbhajan etc they all can speak well now. When they started they were scared to even talk.

I think Babar uses a translator

 

[Bhaijaan]

Not sure about Kapil but Waqar and Harbhajan still have broken English.

Broken English is ok. Many footballers and managers also make a living from.broken English too. It's a confidence thing.

 

[Bhaijaan]

I think Babar uses a translator

Don't know what to say. It is unacceptable in this age and while belonging to countries with very large population of English speakers.

Like I said Kapil, Harbhajan and countless other well know cricketers of today could not speak English but they learnt it quick given the requirements.

We are living in am age people are learning multiple foreign languages as a hobby or for professional reasons. Not hard at all to crack it.

Stop being lazy about it Babar.

 

[jazbati]

It’s not even about English for Babar. What even is his personality even when he speaks Urdu? Zero body language or confidence. He only looks pretty while he bats. The rest is just mediocre. He can’t even say a convincing sentence in urdu let alone English.

Work on some leadership skills and body language. No one is making fun of your English.

 

[Nervesofsteel]

It’s not even about English for Babar. What even is his personality even when he speaks Urdu? Zero body language or confidence. He only looks pretty while he bats. The rest is just mediocre. He can’t even say a convincing sentence in urdu let alone English.

Work on some leadership skills and body language. No one is making fun of your English.

Exactly. I could care less about him not being able to speak English as long as he made sense in Urdu. But he literally cannot even speak a proper sentence and has such a 'paindu' vibe to him.

Shoaib Malik couldn't speak English when he started and look at him now. He didn't even go to any college or University yet he learned how to carry himself on & off the field. It's not hard, all it takes is a little effort...even when Sarfaraz took over as captain, his English was really poor but over time he improved himself but he just talks too fast which is a natural thing.

Babar has made zero effort to improve his communication skills. During the lockdown...it was the perfect opportunity for him to improve on this aspect but obviously he did nothing.

 

[Corridor of Uncertainty]

So we wish to shut down the "masses" like Babar Azam and work on Shan Masood types?

I think what OP is arguing for is a healthy mix. Having polished, educated persons in the team can help with confidence etc.

I'd argue this polishing should happen at all strata of rural and urban Pakistan - and not just in select places.

However, the reality of the country is what it is and encouraging cricket at these places will bring out more talent. The level of talent in elite places is just like any other place - but brings some added benefits.

 

[topspin]

I have always maintained that we need to diversify our talent pool. Barring Shan Masood and Imad, the rest of the team look like a bunch of timid kittens. Most of them do not how to handle the limelight and the fame that comes with being an international cricketer. A classic example of someone who went through this cycle is Hasan Ali.

Pakistan cricket has lost that flair, charisma and alpha male personalities ever since Inzy was made captain because he brought religion into Pakistan cricket.

It is vital that Pakistan becomes a secular environment if it wants to flourish otherwise we'll be stuck with a bunch of timid robots for a long long time.

 

[Giannis]

Pakistanis and their eltism lol. Sports is a working class mans pastime, the rich artsy fartsy can't succeed in sports these days apart from a few exceptions

 

[AdamM97]

I disagree. Cricket should become the sport of the working class if it wants to be popular. The reason why cricket isn’t as popular as football in places like England is because cricket was a ’gentleman’s game’ whereas football was inclusive regardless of which economic class one belongs to.

We shouldn’t expect Pakistani players from poor background to understand the importance of things like diet and professionalism etc. That should be the job of the PCB and coaches. Just look at Brazil, most kids and teens could care less about professionalism and just enjoy playing football. It is only when they join academies and youth clubs that their coaches intervene and help them to maximize their potential.

 

[AdamM97]

I’m all for Babar learning some basic English so that he can better communicate with others, but it’s silly to make that no.1 priority for any captain. Even Messi refuses to speak in English and prefers to speak in his native tongue. This colonial elitism is so problematic.

 

[Mamoon]

The vast majority of our players are from poor backgrounds. This means that they have had inadequate, low quality or education in their childhood and they also had poor nutrition. Moreover, because their parents were also uneducated, they failed to provide the right environment at home.

As a result, the combination of the aforementioned factors means that our players have low cognitive development, which has led to low IQs and which had led to lack of awareness and incapacity to solve problems or have perception.

Education gives a huge edge in sports. People who think education has nothing to do with sporting excellence are talking nonsense.

An educated person with the same talent as an uneducated person who has the same access to practice facilities will make far better use of his ability and become a much better player.

Imran Khan would not have become Imran Khan without his Aitchison and Oxford education. Granted that he academically poor, but he had access to a brilliant environment.

He recognized that he was in no shape or form good enough to succeed at the highest level, so he went and completely changed his bowling action to become of one of the best fast bowlers.

Granted that he had the natural talent to do so, but he wouldn’t have had the perception to change his bowling action if he wasn’t uneducated with adequate cognitive development.

Currently, we only have one proper educated player Mr. zero talent Shan Masood.

If he wasn’t educated, he would be averaging 15 in Test cricket, but it was high cognitive development that led him to be smart about his game and punch above his weight.

With his education level and someone like Umar Akmal’s or even Hafeez’s talent, we are looking at a potential player with a 50+ average.

 

[Mueez]

The vast majority of our players are from poor backgrounds. This means that they have had inadequate, low quality or education in their childhood and they also had poor nutrition. Moreover, because their parents were also uneducated, they failed to provide the right environment at home.

As a result, the combination of the aforementioned factors means that our players have low cognitive development, which has led to low IQs and which had led to lack of awareness and incapacity to solve problems or have perception.

Education gives a huge edge in sports. People who think education has nothing to do with sporting excellence are talking nonsense.

An educated person with the same talent as an uneducated person who has the same access to practice facilities will make far better use of his ability and become a much better player.

Imran Khan would not have become Imran Khan without his Aitchison and Oxford education. Granted that he academically poor, but he had access to a brilliant environment.

He recognized that he was in no shape or form good enough to succeed at the highest level, so he went and completely changed his bowling action to become of one of the best fast bowlers.

Granted that he had the natural talent to do so, but he wouldn’t have had the perception to change his bowling action if he wasn’t uneducated with adequate cognitive development.

Currently, we only have one proper educated player Mr. zero talent Shan Masood.

If he wasn’t educated, he would be averaging 15 in Test cricket, but it was high cognitive development that led him to be smart about his game and punch above his weight.

With his education level and someone like Umar Akmal’s or even Hafeez’s talent, we are looking at a potential player with a 50+ average.

Quality post.

 

[Energy]

I’m all for Babar learning some basic English so that he can better communicate with others, but it’s silly to make that no.1 priority for any captain. Even Messi refuses to speak in English and prefers to speak in his native tongue. This colonial elitism is so problematic.

Messi can speak, and listening to translation you understand he is explaining himself and giving his POV. Have you heard Babar speak even in Urdu?

Forget Babar, what is the one thing we learnt from Azhar in all of his Test series interviews? I did not learn a single new thing about what Pakistan's plans were.

Those vouching for basic education are absolutely spot on!

 

[Bhaijaan]

Are we all so tragically barbaric that we are going to still call english a foreign language? I mean what the hell. The English ruled the subcontinent for 150 years. We got freedom 70 years ago and English is taught in all our schools.

We read in English.

Our mobile usage is mostly English.

Our work is predominantly in English.

To most desi people, English is either their 2nd or 3rd language.

How then some people pass off English as a foreign language?

English is very much a native language. Whoever in any prominent position who hasn't learnt it is just lazy and a sorry excuse of a man.

 

[The_KING]

I’m all for Babar learning some basic English so that he can better communicate with others, but it’s silly to make that no.1 priority for any captain. Even Messi refuses to speak in English and prefers to speak in his native tongue. This colonial elitism is so problematic.

Every time people say that Pakistani players have to learn English, there is always someone who comes back with “Messi doesn’t speak English.” That is irrational point, because Messi plays his football in a Spanish speaking country and he speaks Spanish fluently. Cricket is a different sport where players have to go to many international countries to play. Considering English is a universal language, you would expect our captain to make some effort in trying to improve his English and communication skills. It’s embarrassing how uneducated a lot of our players are.

 

[Titan24]

The vast majority of our players are from poor backgrounds. This means that they have had inadequate, low quality or education in their childhood and they also had poor nutrition. Moreover, because their parents were also uneducated, they failed to provide the right environment at home.

As a result, the combination of the aforementioned factors means that our players have low cognitive development, which has led to low IQs and which had led to lack of awareness and incapacity to solve problems or have perception.

Education gives a huge edge in sports. People who think education has nothing to do with sporting excellence are talking nonsense.

An educated person with the same talent as an uneducated person who has the same access to practice facilities will make far better use of his ability and become a much better player.

Imran Khan would not have become Imran Khan without his Aitchison and Oxford education. Granted that he academically poor, but he had access to a brilliant environment.

He recognized that he was in no shape or form good enough to succeed at the highest level, so he went and completely changed his bowling action to become of one of the best fast bowlers.

Granted that he had the natural talent to do so, but he wouldn’t have had the perception to change his bowling action if he wasn’t uneducated with adequate cognitive development.

Currently, we only have one proper educated player Mr. zero talent Shan Masood.

If he wasn’t educated, he would be averaging 15 in Test cricket, but it was high cognitive development that led him to be smart about his game and punch above his weight.

With his education level and someone like Umar Akmal’s or even Hafeez’s talent, we are looking at a potential player with a 50+ average.

Well put.

As mentioned before its high time that school/collage cricket again starts producing cricketers with a proper structure. We are completely wasting the young talent from that side because of no proper road map for them.

 

[El Generico]

English speaking skills and financial class? I wonder if any other sport fans in the world care about stuff like this or are Pakistani fans special?

 

[Savak]

Shan Masood being appointed at Pakistan's test captain. Sign of good things to come. May this encourage the Upper Class segments of society to take up this sport at the highest level.

Enough of Sarfaraz's Nazimabadi Urdu or Babar's Paindu clueless expressions and decisions on the field.

 

[SpiritOf1903]

Sri Lanka used to be private schools

 

[hur rizvi]

Shan Masood being appointed at Pakistan's test captain. Sign of good things to come. May this encourage the Upper Class segments of society to take up this sport at the highest level.

Enough of Sarfaraz's Nazimabadi Urdu or Babar's Paindu clueless expressions and decisions on the field.

We surely need some diversity interms of the level of education.

Not one guy in our team seems to have basic communication skills like understanding the question and answering it. Letalone English likes of Babar arent even able express themselves adequately in Urdu or Punjabi.

 

[Bhaijaan]

Shan Masood being appointed at Pakistan's test captain. Sign of good things to come. May this encourage the Upper Class segments of society to take up this sport at the highest level.

Enough of Sarfaraz's Nazimabadi Urdu or Babar's Paindu clueless expressions and decisions on the field.

what you’re referring to actually makes a lot of sense in the real world. At least in phases.

Saurav Ganguly was an elite. He paved way so that a small town MS Dhoni (although an extremely progressive one) could take the Bharatiya cricket ahead.

Also speaking of Dhoni , I must say that there’s no such thing as a small town boy but there is small town mentality. Babar Azam has been in international cricket for years and he has not learnt English. Dhoni was similarly a small town boy but he learnt it and we honestly never had a moment of embarrassment with him as captain communication skills wise. He wasn’t high if but he could talk and understand proper English.

 

[Bhaijaan]

Quality of education in Bharat however is another level.

 

[asfandyar]

Cricket in Pakistan is an extension of politics with tribes and cults, but unlike politics, there is no real money in cricket, so the no-brainer is to add more money to attract the elite. Currently, conspiring on a DHA golf course is their favorite sport.

But what can be done in a resource-constrained setting? Focus on out-of-stadium modes such as street cricket. Glamorize cricket, develop rivalries (WWE), market individual brands, highlight journeys, post monthly challenges like bowling 18 consecutive yorkers, hitting 360 degree sixes, arrange football matches between PSL teams.

Perhaps, rename the teams in PSL from city names to political party names. E.g. PTI Zalmis, MQM Kings, Noon Qalandars, PPP Gladiators, DHA United.

Disclaimer: I am against any investment in cricket beyond what is needed to run it as a minimal viable product. Cricket is not a real sport as it plays no role in personal or national development. I don't consider using a stick to guide (or misguide) a rock to the boundary athletics. Either adopt the baseball model or focus on football.

 

[NishanKonar]

I know some posters will cringe at this idea but what you’re referring to actually makes a lot of sense in the real world. At least in phases.

Saurav Ganguly was an elite. He paved way so that a small town MS Dhoni (although an extremely progressive one) could take the Bharatiya cricket ahead.

Also speaking of Dhoni , I must say that there’s no such thing as a small town boy but there is small town mentality. Babar Azam has been in international cricket for years and he has not learnt English. Dhoni was similarly a small town boy but he learnt it and we honestly never had a moment of embarrassment with him as captain communication skills wise. He wasn’t high if but he could talk and understand proper English.

This has absolutely nothing to do with English

Thing is Dhoni always had a natural swagger about him which Babar never had. Its nothing to do with English speaking skills but more with personality

Dhoni wud have always had that self assuredness & swagger even if he could not speak English. Just look at Neeraj Chopra

 

[Kianig89]

Pakistan's 35% children do not go to school, Pakistan youth age <30 is almost 60% of population, don't know what upper class we consider is loss for cricket, important thing is there is no infrastructure in the country with every Tom dick and Harry who has 2 cents is interested in buying real estate, forests, river and agri land is being evaded for housing then how will you create environmental for sports and cricket specifically, add to it PCB some years back did operation on club cricket and now registering a club is more difficult than money laundering.

 

[Kianig89]

Cricket in Pakistan is an extension of politics with tribes and cults, but unlike politics, there is no real money in cricket, so the no-brainer is to add more money to attract the elite. Currently, conspiring on a DHA golf course is their favorite sport.

But what can be done in a resource-constrained setting? Focus on out-of-stadium modes such as street cricket. Glamorize cricket, develop rivalries (WWE), market individual brands, highlight journeys, post monthly challenges like bowling 18 consecutive yorkers, hitting 360 degree sixes, arrange football matches between PSL teams.

Perhaps, rename the teams in PSL from city names to political party names. E.g. PTI Zalmis, MQM Kings, Noon Qalandars, PPP Gladiators, DHA United.

Disclaimer: I am against any investment in cricket beyond what is needed to run it as a minimal viable product. Cricket is not a real sport as it plays no role in personal or national development. I don't consider using a stick to guide (or misguide) a rock to the boundary athletics. Either adopt the baseball model or focus on football.

For cricket to thrive you need good first class cricketers not mercenaries getting hefty checks in Donald duck leagues

 

[asfandyar]

For cricket to thrive you need good first class cricketers not mercenaries getting hefty checks in Donald duck leagues

True. I hope you have a complete white paper on that proposition since posting on an online forum will not increase the PCB's kitty.

 

[kumjsr]

I know some posters will cringe at this idea but what you’re referring to actually makes a lot of sense in the real world. At least in phases.

Saurav Ganguly was an elite. He paved way so that a small town MS Dhoni (although an extremely progressive one) could take the Bharatiya cricket ahead.

Also speaking of Dhoni , I must say that there’s no such thing as a small town boy but there is small town mentality. Babar Azam has been in international cricket for years and he has not learnt English. Dhoni was similarly a small town boy but he learnt it and we honestly never had a moment of embarrassment with him as captain communication skills wise. He wasn’t high if but he could talk and understand proper English.

Dhoni was small town boy, but he learnt it.

Dhoni was studying at one of the renowned and big schools in Eastern India. It has over 6000 students and students from Bihar, Jharkhand and other states queue up to join that school. After Xth, it's filled with top performers of board exams from different school.

He was already in elite type environment that way.