Your thoughts on PM Imran Khan's decision to change domestic cricket

[MenInG]

He made it very clear in his speech that PCB may have executed the process but the decision was made by Imran Khan.

So, is this decision a wise one? Or made without any careful thought?

 

[Savak]

I don't blame IK for adopting the my way or high way approach. Many PCB Chairmans in the last 30-40 years have tried to change the system only for the departments to hold them hostage. This regional cricket structure can only be implemented by force and by keeping the departments in check.

 

[MenInG]

Pakistan’s domestic cricket structure took a major hit when Prime Minister Imran Khan rejected the reinstatement of departmental cricket in the domestic season of 2020/21. The Prime Minister rejected the player’s plea as the domestic structure aims for changes which will have only provinicial teams battling it out. According to reports in the Pakistan media, a draft has been circulated which has no mention of any tournaments for the departments.

According to Shakil Sheikh, the former member PCB Government Board and head of the Board Cricket and Domestic committees, stated that there were no tournaments for the departments and they have been ‘robbed’ off their dues. Another official in the Pakistan Cricket Board stated the Board was unanimous in making departments part of the domestic cricket structure, with some members going as far as to say they must pool up a total of Rs 200 million to be part of the system or they will have to bare all the expenses

Massive blow for players

What is departmental cricket in Pakistan? Domestic cricket in Pakistan has been played among departments and regions for nearly 50 years, starting in the early 1970s, when Abdul Hafeez Kardar, Pakistan's first Test captain and then PCB chairman, encouraged organisations like Habib Bank Limited, Sui Southern Gas Corporation, Water and Power Development Authority and others to provide employment opportunities for players.

What does this do for the players? According to several reports, this has meant that these organisations have suspended their contracts with cricketers. The permanent employees at the organisations have been given only desk jobs at a very meagre salary, meaning their cricket careers are over. Most people who were hired purely for cricket skills are now doing non-executive jobs at a lesser salary.

This has seen 400 cricketers lose their livelihoods because they had held jobs with these departments and also because they were playing for them. In the new season, the Pakistan Cricket Board offered contracts to only 192 cricketers, apart from match officials.

https://www.dnaindia.com/cricket/re...robs-nearly-400-players-of-livelihood-2843459

 

[Ami]

400 cricketers can find new jobs, if they're good enough even with same depts. 400 job losses amongst 220 million..small price to pay.

 

[Varun]

400 cricketers can find new jobs, if they're good enough even with same depts. 400 job losses amongst 220 million..small price to pay.

You make it sound like the rest of the 220 million are safely employed.

 

[Bhaijaan]

I trust Imran for anything to do with Cricket. He knows Pakistan cricket better than anyone.

Having said that, a great leader strives to prove his tough decisions right.

If pepple are going to be impacted by this, he must have some compensation plan in place.

 

[FastBowlingAllrounder]

You make it sound like the rest of the 220 million are safely employed.

Okay fair enough, but letting the country's domestic cricket infrastructure stagnate so that 400 people (who may not be entirely deserving of their jobs) can hog their spots was quite unfair.

If they're good enough, they can get employed under the new system and if not, then they can either improve or find other career pathways. The point is we need to look at the domestic system as a place to find and nurture talent, making players ready for the national team, not as an institute to insure employment for citizens.

 

[shah_1]

Good decision . We were minnows despite department cricket was there for last 15 years so it is time for a change. If the system has to do well then feeder system to first class has to be good, we need to start producing quality U19 cricketers otherwise we will remain minnows

Department stopped giving permanent jobs to new cricketers, they were given yearly or sesson contract.

 

[Usman]

Good decision in my view but as I've said in other threads, the restructuring is not the fault of the poor departmental players and so they need to be supported financially. They need their wages paid until the find new employment/If they can only find low paid employment, they need their wages topped up to a level that they can have a decent life. It's simply unfair to make people with real lives with real children, partners, parents etc to feed the victim of your decision to restructure cricket in the country.

The changes themselves aren't guaranteed to work although I hope they do. Imran wants to mirror the Aussie system entirely but as Wasim Khan has said, the Aussie population is far smaller. Therefore, it would make sense for us to have more teams in our structure than the number of teams in Australia. However IK has rejected this on the basis that he wants to mirror the Australian system as closely as possible.

It's a bold move and IK has guts. Let's hope this leads to the success we all want to see.

 

[Bewal Express]

Its a good decision as the Domestic dept based wasnt fit for purpose. Its a work in progress and it will evolve. As we weed out the guys not good enough for the provinces, we need to have a stop gap for some sort of Dept cricket( a short window) but the in the long term the Depts should have no future.

 

[Giannis]

This was the right decision. Companies handing out jobs to cricketers that they aren't qualified is a terrible corporate decision other than the adverse effects departmental cricket had on the domestic cricket system. Perhaps these players could advocate for a welfare state if they're worried about lack of social safety nets - they could use this as an oppurtunity to strive for all Pakistanis rather than assume that domestic cricketers have a special entitlement to job hand outs.

 

[Markhor]

This was the right decision. Companies handing out jobs to cricketers that they aren't qualified is a terrible corporate decision other than the adverse effects departmental cricket had on the domestic cricket system. Perhaps these players could advocate for a welfare state if they're worried about lack of social safety nets - they could use this as an oppurtunity to strive for all Pakistanis rather than assume that domestic cricketers have a special entitlement to job hand outs.

Exactly, and PCB is not an employment agency. Their primary duty is to develop cricketers for the national team. Under the new system, youngsters will be more battle hardened and prepared for the rigours of international cricket.

Previously, too many mediocre domestic cricketers were staying in comfort zones and had appalling fitness - but were safe in the knowledge they had a secure paycheck. That meant a huge gap between our domestic and international cricket, which explains our lack of success for 20 years.

 

[Mamoon]

We need more teams. There is no point in blindly copy pasting the Australian system because our dynamics are different.

Australia has less population than the combined population of Karachi and Lahore.

We need at least 12-15 teams. We simply have too many active cricketers. After all, we are a country of 200+ million with cricket by far the most popular and played sport.

If less number of teams was directly proportional to greater quality of cricket and competitiveness, BCCI wouldn’t have had 38 FC teams in Ranji Trophy.

This current system is not sustainable and it will not produce results. It is only a matter of time before we either go back to dept. cricket or add more teams, something which should have been done right away, which means we wouldn’t have wasted a good 2 years on an impractical system.

 

[MMHS]

It was the correct decision. The previous system wasn’t working hence there was a change required.

 

[Bewal Express]

We need more teams. There is no point in blindly copy pasting the Australian system because our dynamics are different.

Australia has less population than the combined population of Karachi and Lahore.

We need at least 12-15 teams. We simply have too many active cricketers. After all, we are a country of 200+ million with cricket by far the most popular and played sport.

If less number of teams was directly proportional to greater quality of cricket and competitiveness, BCCI wouldn’t have had 38 FC teams in Ranji Trophy.

This current system is not sustainable and it will not produce results. It is only a matter of time before we either go back to dept. cricket or add more teams, something which should have been done right away, which means we wouldn’t have wasted a good 2 years on an impractical system.

The quality of the teams is already pretty bad and you want more teams to do what?

 

[Rayyman]

Exactly, and PCB is not an employment agency. Their primary duty is to develop cricketers for the national team. Under the new system, youngsters will be more battle hardened and prepared for the rigours of international cricket.

Previously, too many mediocre domestic cricketers were staying in comfort zones and had appalling fitness - but were safe in the knowledge they had a secure paycheck. That meant a huge gap between our domestic and international cricket, which explains our lack of success for 20 years.

Bro this change looks good for domestic cricket but Misbah is still in charge and he will still pick his friends regardless. Now he is meeting with Imran things are looking bleak for the international team.

 

[Markhor]

[MENTION=131701]Mamoon[/MENTION] - 38 FC teams in a country of 1.3bn is about one FC team for every 34M. In Pakistan, six FC teams in a population of 210M is one FC team for every 35M, so it works out be roughly proportional. There's also six 2nd XI teams so there's sufficient opportunities for youngsters if they're good enough.

Six teams isn't the issue, the problem is the poor quality of homegrown coaches and weak grassroots underpinning the FC system. If Mani and Wasim don't address that their reforms will fail.

Bro this change looks good for domestic cricket but Misbah is still in charge and he will still pick his friends regardless. Now he is meeting with Imran things are looking bleak for the international team.

True, we may have a mediocre team but the best coaches know how to maximise results from limited resources and Misbah certainly doesn't have that capability.

Dual role was a good move but they gave it to a guy with no eye for talent.

 

[Afhan Ali]

We need more teams. There is no point in blindly copy pasting the Australian system because our dynamics are different.

Australia has less population than the combined population of Karachi and Lahore.

We need at least 12-15 teams. We simply have too many active cricketers. After all, we are a country of 200+ million with cricket by far the most popular and played sport.

If less number of teams was directly proportional to greater quality of cricket and competitiveness, BCCI wouldn’t have had 38 FC teams in Ranji Trophy.

This current system is not sustainable and it will not produce results. It is only a matter of time before we either go back to dept. cricket or add more teams, something which should have been done right away, which means we wouldn’t have wasted a good 2 years on an impractical system.

With 2nd XI teams the total number of teams become 12.

 

[Bewal Express]

The Director of Cricket role is an excellent innovation( the way we have done it) as it pins one guy down for responsibility. We just have the wrong guy, he is too conservative with selections in batting and we have no development process for young batters, hence we keep recycling the same players like AA and AS.

 

[Titan24]

It was a much needed change. A lot of the 90s stars were handpicked by someone like Imran at young age and even Wasim going forward, system wasnt able to properly filter them other than few who we can call genuinely the product of the system. Also after they got in the team they were trained and guided by the same names and again the system didnt play much role in that.

When you are over dependent on individuals, you are going to struggle once those individuals are gone. So you need a systems to produce a certain level of quality and consistency (Created a thread on the topic, sometime ago http://pakpassion.net/ppforum/showt...lying-on-individuals-to-striving-for-a-system).

Idea is good and transition has been done pretty well, results should start to appear in 3-5 years. With each passing year the system is only gonna get stronger.

 

[shah_1]

We need more teams. There is no point in blindly copy pasting the Australian system because our dynamics are different.

Australia has less population than the combined population of Karachi and Lahore.

We need at least 12-15 teams. We simply have too many active cricketers. After all, we are a country of 200+ million with cricket by far the most popular and played sport.

If less number of teams was directly proportional to greater quality of cricket and competitiveness, BCCI wouldn’t have had 38 FC teams in Ranji Trophy.

This current system is not sustainable and it will not produce results. It is only a matter of time before we either go back to dept. cricket or add more teams, something which should have been done right away, which means we wouldn’t have wasted a good 2 years on an impractical system.

Indian dometic teams were 28 teams before 9 team being added two years ago. 28 teams for 1.3 billions population. India population is six times Pakistan so 28/6= 4.6 not even 6 teams. The nine teams that were added make up 1% of Indian population I think.

India did well with 28 teams, so number of teams don’t matter but quality of grassroots cricket and quality coaching at junior level. The difference is evident when you see the Pakistani U19 cricketers and Indian U19 cricketers

 

[shariqnoor]

This system is only in place for the next 3 years. If PTI loses the election in 2023, we will have departmental cricket back in full force.

 

[shariqnoor]

I don't have a problem with 6 teams at the top. That is fine.

The problem is that this system will only work if you have a hell lot of cricket at the bottom. Right now, the cricket that's happening at the bottom is less than the cricket that's happening at the first class level. It's a reverse pyramid. Which is horrible.

 

[Mamoon]

The quality of the teams is already pretty bad and you want more teams to do what?

Quality of cricket is not proportional to number of teams. Do you think Indian FC cricket will improve in quality if they reduce their teams from 38 to 19?

 

[AAli98]

IK saying it will be like Aussie system will produce Aussie type cricketers.

Watch this space for Chappells Waugh’s ponting gilly warnes coming through.

More like wel be stuck with Malik Hafeez Masoods for the next decade

 

[DandyFellow]

We need more teams. There is no point in blindly copy pasting the Australian system because our dynamics are different.

Australia has less population than the combined population of Karachi and Lahore.

We need at least 12-15 teams. We simply have too many active cricketers. After all, we are a country of 200+ million with cricket by far the most popular and played sport.

If less number of teams was directly proportional to greater quality of cricket and competitiveness, BCCI wouldn’t have had 38 FC teams in Ranji Trophy.

This current system is not sustainable and it will not produce results. It is only a matter of time before we either go back to dept. cricket or add more teams, something which should have been done right away, which means we wouldn’t have wasted a good 2 years on an impractical system.

I totally agree that they will need to add more teams especially from Karachi and Lahore. But that does not mean the regional system is worse than the departmental system. Right now there are 12 teams with 6 first XI and 6 Second XI. At some point, it should be around 20 teams.
Another thing that can be done is that departmental cricket can be brought in at some level but not the highest domestic level. For example Under-19 departmental cricket would be much helpful and useful and a good way for players to enter into regional teams.

 

[Bewal Express]

Quality of cricket is not proportional to number of teams. Do you think Indian FC cricket will improve in quality if they reduce their teams from 38 to 19?

Yes. The less the teams the more each team will be filled with better players. 12 teams is a decent number,the only issue is that they havent got the structure into FC right which means that some talent will be missed. As a start its a decent set up, it needs evolution based on evidence on the quality being produced. We arent too far from getting it right.

 

[Bewal Express]

IK saying it will be like Aussie system will produce Aussie type cricketers.

Watch this space for Chappells Waugh’s ponting gilly warnes coming through.

More like wel be stuck with Malik Hafeez Masoods for the next decade

Maybe but the old system was hotch potch of rubbish and its a miracle that we produced gems. When the gems dried up, the system was exposed.

 

[JattMaula]

Australia system has clearly worked for them. What's the harm in copying them?

I just wish PCB would maybe make onetime payout to those whose jobs have suddenly vanished. These people have devoted their life to cricket. Have kept Pakistan cricket alive and kicking. They deserve dignity.

IK may not like non-elite people but we all can't be worldbeaters. Now that PCB is rolling in dough, there is no reason to betray hundreds of cricket players all over the country.

 

[Angrez Pakistani]

I liked the city rivalries a lot more than this interprovincial garbage.

 

[Liverpool_Faizan]

I have long held the opinion that the PCB's job is not to ensure everyone has a job but to ensure that Pak cricket is always thriving. As well as this, domestic teams main job is to produce quality cricketers...not win matches. Meaning that a domestic team coach and staff should be looking to maximize future potential of players rather than focusing on trophies etc. I am not sure if historically this has always been the case.

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

We need more teams. There is no point in blindly copy pasting the Australian system because our dynamics are different.

Australia has less population than the combined population of Karachi and Lahore.

We need at least 12-15 teams. We simply have too many active cricketers. After all, we are a country of 200+ million with cricket by far the most popular and played sport.

If less number of teams was directly proportional to greater quality of cricket and competitiveness, BCCI wouldn’t have had 38 FC teams in Ranji Trophy.

This current system is not sustainable and it will not produce results. It is only a matter of time before we either go back to dept. cricket or add more teams, something which should have been done right away, which means we wouldn’t have wasted a good 2 years on an impractical system.

Don't compare Pakistan's system to the Indian system. For one thing, BCCI has invested heavily in their system, the population in India is huge and I don't think they have ever changed the format of their system. Not to mention, it has been in-place since colonial era-times. There has been a lot of consistency and stability over decades that has allowed their system to function effectively. Not like here where there has been a change of format almost every 2 years.

 

[Savak]

Australia system has clearly worked for them. What's the harm in copying them?

I just wish PCB would maybe make onetime payout to those whose jobs have suddenly vanished. These people have devoted their life to cricket. Have kept Pakistan cricket alive and kicking. They deserve dignity.

IK may not like non-elite people but we all can't be worldbeaters. Now that PCB is rolling in dough, there is no reason to betray hundreds of cricket players all over the country.

I don't think the players being laid off have had any role in keeping Pakistan Cricket alive and Kicking. There is a reason why they are being booted out. These oldies i.e. players in their late 30's and early 40's who are still playing domestic cricket have actually hurt young prospective players like Jamshaid Ahmed

 

[Savak]

Don't compare Pakistan's system to the Indian system. For one thing, BCCI has invested heavily in their system, the population in India is huge and I don't think they have ever changed the format of their system. Not to mention, it has been in-place since colonial era-times. There has been a lot of consistency and stability over decades that has allowed their system to function effectively. Not like here where there has been a change of format almost every 2 years.

BCCI has a lot of money to play with, it doesn't matter what system they go for. In fact the influx of huge amounts of money in Indian Cricket has now enabled domestic cricketers to get handsome monthly salaries and perks and they can have a comfortable life, focus on their games, fitness, diet 24/7 and not have to worry about balancing playing cricket with jobs to make ends meet.

 

[Savak]

It's not just the number of teams only. Its about the quality of pitches, balls, bats, umpiring, coaching. You cannot deny the fact that this board is trying its best to revamp things. Look at the new faces in the PCB and High Performance Centre i.e. Nadeem Khan, Saqlain Mushtaq, Mohammad Yousaf, Mohammad Zahid, Abdul Razzaq e.t.c.

You have Bazid Khan, Wasim Akram, Umar Gul on the Cricket Committee. You have Waqar Younis, Mushtaq Ahmed, Younis Khan and Misbah ul Haq in the national coaching staff. You have Basit Ali, Abdul Razzaq, Faisal Iqbal, Abdur Rehman, Shahid Anwar, Mohammad Wasim in charge of the domestic teams.

The PCB are in talks with Shahid Afridi and Shoaib Akhtar about some level of involvement in Pakistan Cricket going forward.

This board has gone out of its way to engage the creme of Pakistan Cricket in the board, academies, national team and domestic cricket.

There is a vision, a plan and proactive steps and actions which are taking place and the old status quo is no longer being tolerated.

The likes of Ehsan Mani and Wasim Khan are not getting enough credit for the long term investments and strategic direction that they wish to take Pakistan Cricket in. The Indians made these sort of investments in their Cricket in the late 90's and now 15-20 years later they have enjoyed the fruits and have machine guns against their arch rivals who are still battling with swords and daggers.

 

[Savak]

I don't have a problem with 6 teams at the top. That is fine.

The problem is that this system will only work if you have a hell lot of cricket at the bottom. Right now, the cricket that's happening at the bottom is less than the cricket that's happening at the first class level. It's a reverse pyramid. Which is horrible.

You have to give it some time. As Ehsan Mani and Wasim Khan have revealed, Covid has hampered their plans for sponsorships and to get the cities and clubs going. They have also complained about the massive amounts of bureacracy they have to deal with. Naturally people who are expecting and demanding quick, fast, instant results will be frustrated but these things take time to bear fruit. There is more than enough evidence on display that they are doing their best to revamp things and to take Pakistan Cricket forward

 

[Titan24]

This system is only in place for the next 3 years. If PTI loses the election in 2023, we will have departmental cricket back in full force.

Departmental cricket was already in a decline over the years with some top teams being dismantled and no new teams formed. I dont think just the elections will determine the structure and telling department to form teams would be like click of a finger.

Number of times the previous structure with mixture of departments and regions was changed were obvious signs that system was not working optimally and something was to be changed.

If keeps on working as it is I dont think anyone will change it. PSL while is different is an example of a product which kept on growing and new Govt carried it on in a pretty similar fashion.

 

[Major]

You make decisions based on your country's culture, not just copy someone else who is different in terms of culture.

Australia has a proper sports culture. Alot of them start playing competitive sports throughout highschool. Same thing in canada and usa. Those schools sports plus after school programs help build atheletes.

Making six teams for a domestic system wont make you a top team.

England is the top team in the world and they have more than 10 domestic teams, reason being they have alot of domestic players. Most of international players retire from international to go back to domestic.

Pakistan has different scenes. Our player fakes his age, ends up droping outgrade 10 to train day and night for u19 cricket. Thus, they have no qualification. After playing a season of domestic fricket, that unskillful cricketer than works for the same department in some position. They enjoy job security and stay motivated.

Now domestic cricketers might not have contracts off season, but when they retire. The likes of umar gul and others wont be able to do jobs as they are unqualified with no metric degree.

If imran wants to finish departments, thats fine. But increase the domestic teams. 6 teams for pakistan is not enough. We need atleast 10-12.

Senior first class or internationap cricketers are not gonna retire now as they know to make money is to play first class.

Youngsters cant break into the domestic now. This will be a problem in 4-5 years

 

[Snowflake]

The current system is clearly broken with way too many cricketer who have minimal to no chance of representing Pakistan.

We have to prioritize quality over quantity if our end goal is to have a reliable pipeline of domestic cricketers who can represent Pakistan.

Definitely the right decision. Those opposing it just need some love, as usual.

 

[Snowflake]

You make decisions based on your country's culture, not just copy someone else who is different in terms of culture.

Australia has a proper sports culture. Alot of them start playing competitive sports throughout highschool. Same thing in canada and usa. Those schools sports plus after school programs help build atheletes.

Making six teams for a domestic system wont make you a top team.

England is the top team in the world and they have more than 10 domestic teams, reason being they have alot of domestic players. Most of international players retire from international to go back to domestic.

Pakistan has different scenes. Our player fakes his age, ends up droping outgrade 10 to train day and night for u19 cricket. Thus, they have no qualification. After playing a season of domestic fricket, that unskillful cricketer than works for the same department in some position. They enjoy job security and stay motivated.

Now domestic cricketers might not have contracts off season, but when they retire. The likes of umar gul and others wont be able to do jobs as they are unqualified with no metric degree.

If imran wants to finish departments, thats fine. But increase the domestic teams. 6 teams for pakistan is not enough. We need atleast 10-12.

Senior first class or internationap cricketers are not gonna retire now as they know to make money is to play first class.

Youngsters cant break into the domestic now. This will be a problem in 4-5 years

I think you just outlined the reason as to why the domestic structure needs to change!

The structure is not meant to serve those age fudging unskillful cricketers. This is not a charity organization where you can make money even if you posses minimal to no talent.

If you want high quality cricketers from the domestic setup, give them a high quality competitive environment.

If youngsters want to break into this system, they'll need to work their as$ off, and that is how it should be.

 

[Titan24]

I have long held the opinion that the PCB's job is not to ensure everyone has a job but to ensure that Pak cricket is always thriving. As well as this, domestic teams main job is to produce quality cricketers...not win matches. Meaning that a domestic team coach and staff should be looking to maximize future potential of players rather than focusing on trophies etc. I am not sure if historically this has always been the case.

Agreed. Its important to define purpose of any organization and then all the processes should be made in such a way to achieve that rather than having many sub purposes and loosing the main focus.

I think regions should look to win trophies as that will also get the best out of them and at the same time there should be a balance to try out young players because they should realize what is the ultimate aim of the structure. An example of that perfect balance last year was Northern team with Moh Wasim as head coach. They won national T20 cup and were runner up in the QAE, at the same time they gave chance to almost every single member of the squad including youngsters. Haider Ali's fast transition to national team and development had a lot to do with the QAE trophy experience in which he played 8 matches in his very first season.

 

[Major]

I think you just outlined the reason as to why the domestic structure needs to change!

The structure is not meant to serve those age fudging unskillful cricketers. This is not a charity organization where you can make money even if you posses minimal to no talent.

If you want high quality cricketers from the domestic setup, give them a high quality competitive environment.

If youngsters want to break into this system, they'll need to work their as$ off, and that is how it should be.

Dont talk about hard work. I know the hard work these guys put.
I have seen cricketers spend 10 hours aday. And guess what those cricketers of u19 rawalpindi had to retire from cricket as there is no department cricket

 

[Major]

The current system is clearly broken with way too many cricketer who have minimal to no chance of representing Pakistan.

We have to prioritize quality over quantity if our end goal is to have a reliable pipeline of domestic cricketers who can represent Pakistan.

Definitely the right decision. Those opposing it just need some love, as usual.

? So what. This is a big problem with many. Professional cricketer doenst mean you pay only international cricket.

England has treecothick and many 35 above cricketers playing professional domestic

 

[Savak]

You make decisions based on your country's culture, not just copy someone else who is different in terms of culture.

Australia has a proper sports culture. Alot of them start playing competitive sports throughout highschool. Same thing in canada and usa. Those schools sports plus after school programs help build atheletes.

Making six teams for a domestic system wont make you a top team.

England is the top team in the world and they have more than 10 domestic teams, reason being they have alot of domestic players. Most of international players retire from international to go back to domestic.

Pakistan has different scenes. Our player fakes his age, ends up droping outgrade 10 to train day and night for u19 cricket. Thus, they have no qualification. After playing a season of domestic fricket, that unskillful cricketer than works for the same department in some position. They enjoy job security and stay motivated.

Now domestic cricketers might not have contracts off season, but when they retire. The likes of umar gul and others wont be able to do jobs as they are unqualified with no metric degree.

If imran wants to finish departments, thats fine. But increase the domestic teams. 6 teams for pakistan is not enough. We need atleast 10-12.

Senior first class or internationap cricketers are not gonna retire now as they know to make money is to play first class.

Youngsters cant break into the domestic now. This will be a problem in 4-5 years

Stop with this propaganda of 6 teams is not enough. There is a grade 2 division and there is a city based structure below that and club cricket where the excess cricketers should play. If they want to break into top 6 teams, they better be the best cricketers in the country and will have to work their *** off.

 

[Savak]

Departmental cricket was already in a decline over the years with some top teams being dismantled and no new teams formed. I dont think just the elections will determine the structure and telling department to form teams would be like click of a finger.

Number of times the previous structure with mixture of departments and regions was changed were obvious signs that system was not working optimally and something was to be changed.

If keeps on working as it is I dont think anyone will change it. PSL while is different is an example of a product which kept on growing and new Govt carried it on in a pretty similar fashion.

Departments themselves were selecting players in their late 30's and early 40's and were selecting batsmen in the top 6 with horrible batting averages of mid 20's and early 30's. So much for the logic of merit and quality.

 

[shah_1]

Stop with this propaganda of 6 teams is not enough. There is a grade 2 division and there is a city based structure below that and club cricket where the excess cricketers should play. If they want to break into top 6 teams, they better be the best cricketers in the country and will have to work their *** off.

I agree and that is why the best possible package needs to be offered to these players for the system to work. Domestic cricket needs to be treated like an investment. Better investment =quality players= more money from PSL and international cricket.

 

[UP]

Vision is definitely there. Departments have produced mediocre and timid cricketers for a long, long time.

We will find out in about 10 years if this new system was a right step.

 

[Major]

Stop with this propaganda of 6 teams is not enough. There is a grade 2 division and there is a city based structure below that and club cricket where the excess cricketers should play. If they want to break into top 6 teams, they better be the best cricketers in the country and will have to work their *** off.

You just have no idea of the cricket structure. Our club systems dont pay cricketers..

How can they be best in the country? Rawalpindi has not even held an official club tournament.

You talk about working their butts off, im telling you, you have no idea the amount of work they already are putting with no guidance.

Just because imran says 6 teams doesnt make it right. We have a very big pool of players.

 

[shamaan]

You just have no idea of the cricket structure. Our club systems dont pay cricketers..

How can they be best in the country? Rawalpindi has not even held an official club tournament.

You talk about working their butts off, im telling you, you have no idea the amount of work they already are putting with no guidance.

Just because imran says 6 teams doesnt make it right. We have a very big pool of players.

So why havent we been able to produce players if we have a very big pool of players

 

[Mueez]

I think it is a great step because of the fact there will be a huge competition between the players to perform and get selected in the first XI.

Basically we will have twelve teams (if we include the second XIs too) instead of six which is a lot for a country like Pakistan.

12 x 11 = 132 players.

That’s a big amount considering Pakistan has around 220 million people.

220 mil : 12 = 18.333 ~ 18 players per million.

So, in my opinion, that is more than enough for us.

 

[Extra_Cover]

The notion of this domestic structure is spot on.

I'm not sure why people on here its only 6 teams when the fact is there is 2nd grade consisting of 6 more teams. Therefore, in the cricket structure we have 12 full fledged teams.

The concern in here mostly is that there would be an international standard cricketer struggling through 2nd tier structure and hence would not make it to our international team. However, if I ask the posters in here to name one such player that should be playing international games is rotting away in 2nd tier cricket most obviously there would be no response.

Having said that it is a valid criticism and therefore PCB should make it mandatory that with every season there should be at least 2 performers in each batting and bowling (or 3 in total) be promoted to 1st team and similarly relegate same number to 2nd tier. This would ensure rotation takes place and performers are rightly rewarded.

 

[shah_1]

So why havent we been able to produce players if we have a very big pool of players

Yes Babar Azam in last 20 years. Only one batsman


Players like Babar Azam can never be ignored in any system. Even at U19 level, he had the perfect balance. The thing is that we aren't producing more of him, or even 50% of his calibre . The batsmanship at U19 level is a horror story when our players play against top U19 team

 

[shamaan]

Yes Babar Azam in last 20 years. Only one batsman


Players like Babar Azam can never be ignored in any system. Even at U19 level, he had the perfect balance. The thing is that we aren't producing more of him, or even 50% of his calibre . The batsmanship at U19 level is a horror story when our players play against top U19 team

What about inzamam younis khan mo Yousuf ?

Haider ali can be another player.

Now we have 6 teams we should see the compition more balanced and the mediocre players getting exposed

 

[shah_1]

What about inzamam younis khan mo Yousuf ?

Haider ali can be another player.

Now we have 6 teams we should see the compition more balanced and the mediocre players getting exposed

90s product

 

[MenInG]

Asked about the growing concerns of cricketers over abolishment of departments cricket, Wasim said:

“Frankly speaking the PCB is not a job-providing organisation. Rather our main function is to take steps to promote cricket in the country to make a strong team at national level,” he said and added that currently Pakistan is ranked 7th in the world that shows that the old system failed in producing good players who could help the country to win mega international events.

He said that for making Pakistan one of the great teams in world, changes in domestic system were imperative. “As far as job are concerned, we are going to set-up 90 cricket association under the already established six regions that means over 90 coaches and managers will be required. So the players, who faced job issues could be accommodated in associations,” he said. “ These two initiatives — the new domestic system and the deal with PTV to promote domestic cricket are game changers, I tell you,” he said.

 

[FreePalestine]

Asked about the growing concerns of cricketers over abolishment of departments cricket, Wasim said:

“Frankly speaking the PCB is not a job-providing organisation. Rather our main function is to take steps to promote cricket in the country to make a strong team at national level,” he said and added that currently Pakistan is ranked 7th in the world that shows that the old system failed in producing good players who could help the country to win mega international events.

He said that for making Pakistan one of the great teams in world, changes in domestic system were imperative. “As far as job are concerned, we are going to set-up 90 cricket association under the already established six regions that means over 90 coaches and managers will be required. So the players, who faced job issues could be accommodated in associations,” he said. “ These two initiatives — the new domestic system and the deal with PTV to promote domestic cricket are game changers, I tell you,” he said.

This was my favourite part of this illuminating interview with Dr. Nauman. I really hope Wasim Khan succeeds in implementing these two initiatives. I believe him when he says they could be game changers. Two most important things to keep an eye on if we are really concerned about the future of Pak cricket: What is the status of these cricket associations, when will they come into force? When will city-cricket restart?

Btw - hope people have noticed that they are offering opportunities to players if they merit them in coaching, management positions. I am sure they will also need new umpires and referees as Pak hasn’t produced new ones for a while.

 

[Savak]

Wasim Khan highlighted what I suspected for a very long time was a serious problem with the ex test players, coaches, officials employed by the PCB in domestic cricket and the NCA ie everyone was in their comfort zone, everyone was content in getting a monthly salary without contributing much, no one had any vision or personal goals, no concerns with whether Pakistan Cricket was moving forward or not.

First and foremost the operating and corporate culture at the PCB has to change for the better

 

[saeed5646]

Our regular test player asad shafiq struggling to dominate first class cricket which shows competition is tough .Also 7 matches each have been played by each team but still no one is clearly dominating which is evidence of competitive cricket .

 

[shah_1]

Good decision . We were minnows despite department cricket was there for last 15 years so it is time for a change. If the system has to do well then feeder system to first class has to be good, we need to start producing quality U19 cricketers otherwise we will remain minnows

Department stopped giving permanent jobs to new cricketers, they were given yearly or sesson contract.

Again my point

For any system to work. The grassroot cricket is cruical. Our cricket infrastructure in 2nd and 3 tier is a disaster, and also 1st tier cities aren't that good as well apart from Lahore, and Karachi(acceptable level)

 

[JibranAnsari]

Even in 6 teams system we are lacking quality players , imagine the level of cricket in the old system.

 

[shamaan]

Even in 6 teams system we are lacking quality players , imagine the level of cricket in the old system.

They are slowly coming throw cant expect it in 1 season.

 

[shamaan]

Again my point

For any system to work. The grassroot cricket is cruical. Our cricket infrastructure in 2nd and 3 tier is a disaster, and also 1st tier cities aren't that good as well apart from Lahore, and Karachi(acceptable level)

Yes i agree we need grassroot cricket even if we did create a system it should be all levels of the continum for example foundation,participation,performance and excellence only the best can get to the excellence level.for the people who are just playing cricket for the fun off it can have benefits such as mind health and psychological.we lack all aspects

 

[Markhor]

Selfish people like Javed Miandad who want checks from departments for life will obviously oppose the new merit-based system.

What they ignore is that youngsters were being criminally wasted in a complex system carrying so much mediocrity while unfit uncles ruled the roost. Nobody was being held accountable for performances and nobody cared.

Now guys like Irfanullah Shah, Kamran Ghulam, Shahnawaz Dhani, Saif Badar and many more are being given proper chances to show their worth.

 

[Ismailtoca]

Obviously there are those who dislike any change proposed or conducted by Imran due to personal issues.

However, this is a fantastic change. Now we get to see the best of the best compete. The point of the domestic system is to get the best players available to play for Pakistan. By having more teams - you now have a bunch of mediocre players also playing which allowed people like Asad Shafiq to prosper by seeing out the good bowlers - or bowlers to take wickets easily.

Now we have a system which not only makes it easier to find and select the best players, but also gives them match practice playing against good players which should help them adjust to the international arena better where you cant see off one or two good bowlers.

Also - you have 2XIs which should also have 6 teams and players to compete to get into the first XI teams.

 

[moghul]

Even in 6 teams system we are lacking quality players , imagine the level of cricket in the old system.

Exactly , now the main team and reserve players are in NZL and domestic teams are filling up with discarded old players . But, with fewer teams its easy to monitor individual performance.

 

[Rana]

I think the quality of cricket must have risen especially with the players knowing that these games are far better televised, so they will want to look the best they can when they play out there. Much easier to be selected if the proof is there for everyone to see.

Also, the PCB social media is in full flow these days and I really like how they are highlighting key individual performances every day by players. I just hope they introduce speed guns in every game as well, I hate having to guess the speeds of potential fast bowlers for Pakistan.

 

[Bewal Express]

I think the system into the 2nd X1 must be properly organised. At the moment there isn't any system that I can see and that is a failure of WK and Mani. Overall the system at the FC is working well. The chachas have gone or are their last legs.

 

[FreePalestine]

I am really worried that these guys are too focussed on the national team and the top tier of domestic cricket and that grassroots cricket has been destroyed by the abolishment of departments completely. I want the promised city and club cricket networks to be delivered.

 

[Bewal Express]

I think the quality of cricket must have risen especially with the players knowing that these games are far better televised, so they will want to look the best they can when they play out there. Much easier to be selected if the proof is there for everyone to see.

Also, the PCB social media is in full flow these days and I really like how they are highlighting key individual performances every day by players. I just hope they introduce speed guns in every game as well, I hate having to guess the speeds of potential fast bowlers for Pakistan.

Its a shame they still can't get live score cards.

 

[Markhor]

I am really worried that these guys are too focussed on the national team and the top tier of domestic cricket and that grassroots cricket has been destroyed by the abolishment of departments completely. I want the promised city and club cricket networks to be delivered.

To set up city and club cricket, they need to install the interim management in the 6 Regional Associations. Haven't heard any update about this.

 

[shah_1]

Another problem with 2nd XI is the inferior quality balls being used , should use the same balls that are being used in the first XI

 

[shah_1]

I am really worried that these guys are too focussed on the national team and the top tier of domestic cricket and that grassroots cricket has been destroyed by the abolishment of departments completely. I want the promised city and club cricket networks to be delivered.

it has been a failure of Wasim Khan so far. All the good things of this administration will go to waste if there is no grassroot cricket

 

[JibranAnsari]

Another problem with 2nd XI is the inferior quality balls being used , should use the same balls that are being used in the first XI

yes , thats a big turn off.

They are compromising a whole league by tryiing to save some money.

 

[Shafi]

You make decisions based on your country's culture, not just copy someone else who is different in terms of culture.

Australia has a proper sports culture. Alot of them start playing competitive sports throughout highschool. Same thing in canada and usa. Those schools sports plus after school programs help build atheletes.

Making six teams for a domestic system wont make you a top team.

England is the top team in the world and they have more than 10 domestic teams, reason being they have alot of domestic players. Most of international players retire from international to go back to domestic.

Pakistan has different scenes. Our player fakes his age, ends up droping outgrade 10 to train day and night for u19 cricket. Thus, they have no qualification. After playing a season of domestic fricket, that unskillful cricketer than works for the same department in some position. They enjoy job security and stay motivated.

Now domestic cricketers might not have contracts off season, but when they retire. The likes of umar gul and others wont be able to do jobs as they are unqualified with no metric degree.

If imran wants to finish departments, thats fine. But increase the domestic teams. 6 teams for pakistan is not enough. We need atleast 10-12.

Senior first class or internationap cricketers are not gonna retire now as they know to make money is to play first class.

Youngsters cant break into the domestic now. This will be a problem in 4-5 years

Agree fully this time except
Youngsters cant break into the domestic now. This will be a problem in 4-5 years
But you want senior players in the team than youngsters. So youngsters need to ripe to get into First Class and then enter into national team after 32-35 (although most players from other countries retire that age).

 

[DarkKnight123]

[MENTION=9]Saj[/MENTION] Saj bhai, Is there any update on the interim committees for the six cricket associations that are suppose to be announced this month?
Junaid Zia said they were suppose to register the clubs last month but they haven't even announced the interim committees yet. Do you know why its delayed?

 

[Shafi]

We need more teams. There is no point in blindly copy pasting the Australian system because our dynamics are different.

Australia has less population than the combined population of Karachi and Lahore.

We need at least 12-15 teams. We simply have too many active cricketers. After all, we are a country of 200+ million with cricket by far the most popular and played sport.

If less number of teams was directly proportional to greater quality of cricket and competitiveness, BCCI wouldn’t have had 38 FC teams in Ranji Trophy.

This current system is not sustainable and it will not produce results. It is only a matter of time before we either go back to dept. cricket or add more teams, something which should have been done right away, which means we wouldn’t have wasted a good 2 years on an impractical system.

First you said there is no talent now you want more teams. Why teams needs to be filled with grandpas, uncles, family members of PCB's officials or any Tom or Dick from the street? Do we need 1000+ fast class so-called wanna be cricketers and from that hard to find even proper 15 decent players?

 

[azimiqbal]

For this domestic system to work , grass roots cricket needs be strong , I have given pcb excuse of the pandemic , but when things go back to normal I expect a solid system in place within two years .

Finally using a different ball for second 11 is a disgrace

 

[shamaan]

For this domestic system to work , grass roots cricket needs be strong , I have given pcb excuse of the pandemic , but when things go back to normal I expect a solid system in place within two years .

Finally using a different ball for second 11 is a disgrace

They should be able to use the same ball as the first xi its not hard as for grassroots i hope they are working on it in the background