Sports

PCB wants to revive women’s cricket in Pakistan: Najam Sethi

Published

2 years ago

Farwa

KARACHI: The chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) management committee, Najam Sethi, on Saturday said that India’s announcement of their women’s league came right after Pakistan announced the same.

In an interaction with the media on Saturday, Sethi said PCB wanted to revive women’s cricket in the country and the Women’s League is part of that plan.

Amid the ongoing eighth edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL), the PCB will hold three women’s exhibition matches as a build-up to the Women’s League.

“As soon as we announced the women’s league, India and the IPL announced their own women’s league. This year we are going to launch a women’s league. There are some women’s matches in this PSL as well,” he said.

He also heaped massive praise on Pakistan women’s wicketkeeper-batter Muneeba Ali for “scoring a magnificent century” against Ireland in the ongoing ICC Women’s World Cup 2023 in South Africa.

During the conference, Sethi also admitted that continuing the (PSL) on home soil was a “challenge.”

Earlier, there had been concerns voiced over the future of the PSL 8 matches scheduled in Karachi, following the attack on the city’s police chief’s headquarters on Friday evening.

However, an emergency meeting was called by the PCB which was attended by franchise representatives. In the meeting, PCB, in consultation with security agencies and the provincial government, took franchises in confidence. As a result, they all agreed to continue with the ongoing edition of PSL as per schedule in Karachi.

Sethi also told media representatives: “Continuing PSL in Pakistan is a challenge. The Punjab government sent us a bill of Rs800m for security, while the bill was Rs400m for Karachi. However, after our request, the Chief Minister of Sindh, Murad Ali Shah, waived the bill. When I told this to the Punjab government, they also decided against charging us for security.”

“We do not take a single rupee from the government but pay taxes,” he added.

Sethi also revealed that Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif had asked him to restore departmental cricket.

“Before I came, instructions were issued to restore departmental cricket. I hope that Karachi Customs will also restore the cricket team. It is not appropriate that if the chairman changes, all the work goes to waste,” he concluded.

Schedule of women’s exhibition matches

Mar 8 — Pakistan Women’s League Exhibition Match 1

Mar 10 — Pakistan Women’s League Exhibition Match 2

Mar 11 — Pakistan Women’s League Exhibition Match 3

All three matches will be played at the Pindi Cricket Stadium in Rawalpindi.

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Sumair Ahmad is named the 2025 Champions Trophy Director by PCB.

Published

1 day ago

Farwa

PCB chief Mohsin Naqvi commented on the appointment, saying, “Sumair is a highly organized professional with a wealth of administrative expertise.” He will undoubtedly give players, officials, and fans alike an amazing ICC Champions Trophy 2025, especially when combined with his unshakable love for cricket.

He continued, “The ICC Champions Trophy 2025 promises to showcase Pakistan’s ability to host world-class cricketing events, welcoming players and fans from around the globe to experience the country’s renowned hospitality and passion for the game.”

The BCCI informed the ICC earlier this month that it will not be sending a side to the event, which is set for 2025 in Pakistan during the February–March season.

After the PCB asked for clarity in its letter regarding the BCCI’s unwillingness to tour Pakistan, the ICC requested India’s justifications for not inviting Pakistan to compete for the Champions Trophy.

The broadcasters, meanwhile, reportedly pushed the ICC to make the Champions Trophy 2025 schedule available right away.

Due to the Indian government’s refusal to send a delegation to Pakistan for the event, the schedule that was supposed to be issued on November 12 was postponed.

The broadcasting rights, which were given to broadcasters for a record $3 billion until 2027, are heavily dependent on the success of the main events, especially those involving India and Pakistan, which regularly attract the largest audiences.

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India withdraws from the World Cup of Blind T20 Cricket in Pakistan

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2 days ago

Farwa

Adding to the issue surrounding the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, the Indian government refused to allow their squad to travel to Pakistan for the Blind Cricket T20 World Cup, which is set to start in Lahore on November 23.

According to Indian media, India, the reigning champion, would not go to Pakistan to play in the Blind T20 World Cup 2024 since the government has not given its approval.

Lahore and Multan are set to host the Blind T20 World Cup 2024 from November 23 to December 3.

The general secretary of the Indian Blind Cricket Association (IBCA), Sailendra Yadav, recently discussed the upsetting news about the blind cricket team’s upcoming trip to Pakistan in an interview with India Today.

The team was given a No-Objection Certificate (NOC) by the Sports Ministry, but the Ministry of External Affairs finally refused to allow them to enter the border, Yadav revealed.

Yadav stated, “We have been waiting for the government to give us permission to travel to Pakistan for the past 25 days.”

“We will not be receiving any authorization to travel to Pakistan, and we can cancel your tournament,” the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) informed us over the phone.

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Aaqib Javed designated as interim head coach for white-ball formats of Pakistan

Published

3 days ago

Farwa

On Monday, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced the hiring of former fast bowler Aaqib Javed as the interim head coach of the Pakistan men’s cricket team till the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.

Throughout this period, Aaqib will maintain his role as a senior member of the men’s National Selection Committee and will be allocated more responsibilities upon the completion of the eight-team tournament.

The PCB will commence the recruitment process for a permanent white-ball head coach, with the objective of finalising the appointment before the conclusion of the ICC Champions Trophy, which is set to take place from 19 February to 9 March.

The white-ball coaching position became available with Gary Kirsten’s departure last month, prior to the current tour of Australia.

In Kirsten’s absence, red-ball head coach Jason Gillespie led the team during the tour of Australia and will now return for the forthcoming two-Test series in South Africa.

The Pakistan men’s team is set to compete in three ODIs and three T20Is in Zimbabwe from November 24 to December 5, followed by an equal number of white-ball matches in South Africa from December 10 to 22.

Prior to the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, Pakistan will host New Zealand and South Africa for an ODI triangular series from February 8 to 14.

Aaqib Javed had considerable coaching expertise, having formerly held the position of Pakistan’s bowling coach during their triumphant ICC T20 World Cup campaign in 2009. Earlier this year, he served as the bowling coach for the Sri Lanka men’s squad.

Before that, he managed the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in achieving ODI status and qualifying for the ICC World Cup 2015 in Australia during his term as head coach.

Additionally, the right-arm fast bowler served as the coach of Pakistan’s Under-19 squad during their victory in the U19 World Cup in 2004.