PCB chief Mohsin Naqvi blames lack of ‘elite players pool’ for Pakan’s poor show in Test cricket | Cricket News

Pakan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi has blamed the lack of “talent pool” for national team’s poor outings in the Test cricket.
PCB chief’s statement came in the wake of the embarrassing 10-wicket loss to Bangladesh in the first Test in Rawalpindi. Pakan has been searching for a test win at home since its last victory over South Africa at Rawalpindi in December 2021. The first-test loss was its fifth at home in that span, which also includes four draws.
“It was a very disappointing loss,” Naqvi told reporters on Monday.
“The problem is the selection committee has no pool to turn to for high-quality replacement players.
“Losing to Bangladesh is sad but the selection committee had given the team 17 players,” Naqvi said.
Pakan’s Naseem Shah, second right, celebrates with teammate after taking the wicket of Bangladesh’s Zakir Hasan during the third day of first cricket test match between Pakan and Bangladesh, in Rawalpindi, Pakan, Friday, Aug. 23, 2024. AP/PTI
“If the coach or captain aren’t playing some of them, that’s their decision. The team management may have made a make, but that has nothing to do with the selection committee.”
Naqvi had spoken about conducting a big overhaul after Pakan was eliminated from the Super Eight at the T20 World Cup.
“We want to fix our problems, but when we look at how to resolve them, we don’t have any solid data or (elite) players pool which we can draw from,” he said.
The Pakan Cricket Board is planning to use AI to help harness a pool of backup players from the newly announced 50-over tournament – Champions Cup – scheduled to be held from September 12 to 29.
Pakan cricket stalwarts Waqar Younis, Saqlain Mushtaq, Misbah-ul-haq, Shoaib Malik and Sarfaraz Ahmed will work as mentors of the five teams in the Champions Cup.
“This Cup will make domestic cricket strong, we’ll have a pool of 150 players, and then the surgery will be done the selection committee,” Naqvi said.
“But you can’t dump someone unless you have a better one to replace them.”