Tag: PCB Chairman

The chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Mohsin Naqvi on Sunday announced free entry for fans in the upcoming Champions One-Day Cup matches in Faisalabad.

After a meeting held to discuss the arrangements for hosting the Champions Cup, Naqvi told the media that fans could watch all the matches except the playoffs for free at the Iqbal Stadium.

The meeting was attended by Chief Operating Officer PCB Salman Naseer, Chief Financial Officer Javed Murtaza, Advisor Bilal Afzal, Director Domestic Abdullah Khurram Niazi, Director Commercial, Director High Performance, Senior General Manager Domestic Junaid Zia, and other relevant officials.

“The residents of Faisalabad love the game of cricket. After a long time, Pakistan’s top players will be in action in a major tournament in Faisalabad,” said Naqvi.

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“Not only will talent emerge from the Champions Cup, but domestic cricket will also strengthen. For the success of the Champions Cup, the entire team must work responsibly.”

The Best of the best cricketers from the country will feature in the single-league competition that will also serve as the homecoming of men’s seniors’ competitive cricket in Faisalabad after nearly two years.

The last domestic men’s 50-over match played at the Iqbal Stadium was in March 2022 between Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Champions One-Day Cup Schedule

12 Sep – Wolves v Panthers

13 Sep – Stallions v Lions

14 Sep – Dolphins v Panthers

15 Sep – Wolves v Stallions

16 Sep – Lions v Panthers

17 Sep – Dolphins v Wolves

19 Sep – Stallions v Dolphins

20 Sep – Lions v Wolves

21 Sep – Panthers v Stallions

22 Sep – Dolphins v Lions

24 Sep – Qualifier (Team No.1 v Team No. 2)

25 Sep – Eliminator 1 (Team No.3 v Team No.4)

27 Sep – Eliminator 2 (Losing Qualifier v Winning Eliminator 2)

29 Sep – Final

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Mohsin Naqvi, the chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), made some major decisions on Monday during a meeting with the national men’s coaching staff, members of the men’s selection committee, and senior PCB officials at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Lahore.

Pakistan’s white-ball head coach Gary Kirsten, red-ball head coach Jason Gillespie, PCB CEO Salman Naseer, assistant coach Azhar Mahmood, Director of International Cricket Usman Wahla, members of the selection committee Mohammad Yousuf and Asad Shafiq, Bilal Afzal, Director High-Performance Centers Nadeem Khan and Director Domestic Cricket Abdullah Khurram Niazi participated in the three-hour long meeting.

The chairman chaired the meeting and gave complete autonomy to the red-ball and white-ball head coaches of their respective teams to improve their performances.

Naqvi also confirmed the formation of Pakistan’s new selection committee, which includes the head coaches and captains of the respective format along with former Test cricketers Mohammad Yousuf and Asad Shafiq.

He also revealed that the selection committee will oversee a process to ensure every player’s participation in domestic cricket. Meanwhile, players will also undergo fitness tests every three months.

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The chairman also announced that the central contract will be given for a one-year period, unlike last year’s three-year contracts. The contract will be reviewed annually based on the player’s fitness and performance.

Meanwhile, a technical procedure will be made to issue No Objection Certificates (NOCs) to the players for playing in the franchise leagues across the globe.

The chairman also announced the plans to upgrade the current high-performance centres as well as the training of local coaches. Moreover, high-performance centres will be built in Islamabad and Peshawar.

He also gave instructions to appoint separate coaches for Pakistan Shaheens and Under 19 cricket teams as well as organise consistent series and tournaments for these teams.

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Pakistan’s white-ball head coach Gary Kirsten and assistant coach Azhar Mahmood have reached Lahore on Monday.

The two coaches will meet the chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Mohsin Naqvi to analyze and discuss the various factors contributing to the team’s disappointing performance in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024.

Additionally, they will deliberate on strategies and future plans to steer the team in a more positive direction.

Along with Gary Kirsten and Azhar Mahmood, Pakistan’s red-ball head coach Jason Gillespie is also set to reach Lahore today.

Moreover, Mohsin Naqvi will also be meeting former captain Sarfaraz Ahmed and other former cricketers to discuss the ongoing issues of the national men’s cricket team.

It is pertinent to mention Naqvi recently shared that former players will make the decision regarding the future of white-ball captain Babar Azam.

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“No decision [on captaincy] has been taken so far related to Babar Azam,” said the PCB chief, adding that he is seeking advice from former cricketers on how to improve cricket in Pakistan.

“I’m only speaking to those former cricketers who are interested in the betterment of Pakistan cricket,” he added.

The Babar Azam-led Pakistan team were knocked out from the group stage of the T20 World Cup, majorly because of their upset defeat against the USA, followed by a gut-wrenching defeat against arch-rivals India.

The back-to-back defeats had put Pakistan on the verge of an early exit from the tournament while the abandonment of the crucial group-stage fixture between the USA and Ireland officially marked the end of their campaign in T20 World Cup 2024.

The Green Shirts’s next assignment is a two-match home Test series against Bangladesh and Sarfaraz Ahmed is expected to be part of the series.

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DUBLIN: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi presented special jerseys to white-ball captain Babar Azam and pace bowler Shaheen Afridi for their recent achievements here on Sunday.

Both players received the jerseys after Pakistan’s crushing seven-wicket victory over Ireland in the second T20I to level the three-match series 1-1.

PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi presented special jerseys to @babarazam258 and @iShaheenAfridi to celebrate their recent achievements.

Babar achieved the most wins as a T20I captain, while Shaheen completed his 300 international wickets during the second T20I.#IREvPAK |… pic.twitter.com/6pphKVVD8B

— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) May 12, 2024

With the victory over Ireland, Babar Azam became the most successful captain in T20I history with 45 wins, surpassing Uganda’s Brian Masaba (44). Azam has led Pakistan in 78 matches since assuming the role in 2019.

Meanwhile, Shaheen Afridi achieved the significant milestone of taking 300 wickets in international cricket. Ireland captain Paul Stirling became his 300th wicket during the second T20I.

The 24-year-old is also the fifth youngest bowler to achieve the milestone.

He has represented Pakistan in 145 matches across formats since making his international debut in 2018. He took 113 wickets in Test cricket, 104 in ODI and 84 in T20I.

Notably, Pakistan opted to bowl first in the second T20I and Afridi removed both openers in the fourth over to reduce Ireland to 34-2.

However, Lorcan Tucker played brilliant innings of 51 runs from 34 balls, featuring five boundaries and two sixes, while Gareth Delany scored a quick 28 off 10 to propel Ireland to 193 in their allocated 20 overs.

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Pakistan successfully chased the 194-run target with 19 balls to spare, courtesy of Mohammad Rizwan and Fakkhar Zaman’s half-centuries.

They constructed a 140-run partnership in 78 balls to tilt the game in Pakistan’s favour after Saim Ayub (6) and Babar Azam (0) fell early.

Rizwan scored an unbeaten 75 off 46, featuring six boundaries and four sixes, while Zaman was dismissed after scoring 78 runs from 40 balls.

Azam Khan was another notable contributor with an unbeaten 30 off 10 with four sixes. He hit Mark Adair for three sixes in the 17th over to finish the match in style.

The third and decisive T20I between Pakistan and Ireland will be played on 14 May (tomorrow).

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LAHORE: Mohsin Naqvi, the Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), has announced that each player in the national squad will receive a prize money of $100,000 in the event of Pakistan’s victory in the ICC T20 World Cup 2024.

Naqvi met the players at Gaddafi Stadium after the training session for the upcoming tours of Ireland and England, in a build-up to the mega-event.

Team selectors Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Yousuf, assistant coach Azhar Mehmood and director of international cricket Usman Wahla were also present in the meeting.

Chairman PCB also hosted a lunch in honour of the players and the team management after which he talked to players and encouraged them for the upcoming tours as well as the T20 World Cup 2024, starting from June 1 in the United States and West Indies.

He announced the cash prize for each player and motivated them to give their best and lead Pakistan to victory in the World Cup.

“I hope that you [players] will raise the Pakistani flag high and lead the team to success,” said Mohsin Naqvi.

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“You should not care about anything, but to play and give your best for Pakistan. Just demonstrate teamwork and the victory will be yours.”

Chairman PCB also presented special green shirts to Mohammad Rizwan for completing 3000 runs in T20 matches, and Naseem Shah for taking 100 wickets in international cricket.

It is worth mentioning here that the Pakistan men’s cricket team is currently participating in a three-match training session here ahead of their three-match T20I series against Ireland.

All three matches will be held at Clontarf in Dublin on 10, 12 and 14 May 2024 and will start at 3 PM local time.

The three-match away series, followed by four T20Is in England, will serve as a stepping stone for the Green Shirts to boast their preparations for this year’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 in the West Indies and the United States of America (USA).

Pakistan squad for Ireland and England T20Is

Babar Azam (c), Abrar Ahmed, Azam Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Rizwan, Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Agha, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Afridi, Usman Khan.

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KARACHI: Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Mohsin Naqvi expressed his hope and reiterated the board’s commitment to host the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 in Pakistan.

Naqvi, while addressing the media at the National Bank Stadium on Monday night, following the conclusion of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 9, gave an overview of his participation in the ICC Board Meeting, the core agenda of which was the Champions Trophy 2025.

“We are committed towards hosting the ICC Champions Trophy at home. I am really hopeful that it will take place in Pakistan.

“Champions Trophy was on the agenda of the ICC meeting I attended recently, and I reinstated our board’s commitment towards hosting the event.”

PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi further revealed that the major stadiums of the country will undergo upgradation before the global event.

“Our three main venues – Lahore, Karachi and Rawalpindi – will be upgraded before the Champions Trophy. We will upgrade other venues later as well, once these three are done. Our stadiums will be state-of-the-art once they have been renovated.”

He further confirmed to have met his Indian counterpart, Board for Cricket Control in India (BCCI) Secretary Jay Shah on the sidelines of the ICC Board Meeting and revealed that the conversation was “very fruitful”.

“I met with Jay Shah, Secretary BCCI, and the conversation we had was very fruitful. I will not be going into details as it is a sensitive matter, but I want to reassure everyone that PCB is committed towards holding the Champions Trophy in Pakistan, and will leave no stone unturned to achieve that.”

When asked about a decision being made regarding the coaching staff, Chairman PCB replied, “We are currently working on it. We are trying to finalise the coaching staff at our earliest.

“I will not go into details, but there is a lot of backend work being done to search and finalise the staff, as the players are scheduled to leave for Kakul soon as well. We will try to hire the best we can find.

“I will not be taking any names, as all the discussions are in preliminary stages. We will announce the coaching staff as soon as it is locked.”

PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi then went on to acknowledge the deteriorated conditions of pitches in the country’s major stadiums and shared that he is planning to get around five different kinds of pitches in the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Lahore.

“I am trying to get four or five different kinds of pitches made in National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Lahore. One will be made out of Australian soil, one will be made out of English soil and the remaining two or three pitches will replicate other regions,” stated PCB Chairman.

I hope we are successful in this endeavor as such pitches are required by our players. Our stadium pitches are quite dead as well so they need to be worked upon. We do not have technical experts for this in the country so we might need to fly someone in,” he concluded.

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ISLAMABAD: Chairman Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Mohsin Naqvi met Pakistan players participating in the ongoing Pakistan Super League (PSL) 9 here at a local hotel on Tuesday.

The chairman addressed the players and lauded their performances in national colours. COO PCB Salman Naseer, Chief Selector Wahab Riaz and other PCB officials were also present on this occasion.

Addressing the players, the PCB Chairman said, “Our collective mission is to win and for that, we must be united. We are committed to bringing merit to our work ethic.

“The high performers and quality players will be given ample opportunities to prove their mettle. All of you are good enough and that is why you are here. The board aims to invest more resources in our players.

“I want you to inculcate fighting spirit in your style of play irrespective of the results. Fans in Pakistan love cricket and they will surely back the team when you put up a fight on the ground.

“We will have to make some sacrifices for the great cause and look forward to the upcoming challenges in our cricket schedule. The PCB is also planning to upgrade some of the major venues in the country.”

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Talking about the team’s preparation for the ICC T20 World Cup 2024, Mohsin Naqvi stated, “We have a home series against New Zealand followed by away series against Ireland and England before departing to the USA for the mega event.

“The board has planned a strength and conditioning camp before this challenging international season.”

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Zaka Ashraf on Thursday assumed the charge of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Management Committee chairman, the cricket board announced.

After assuming the charge, Zaka Ashraf will oversee the affairs of the PCB for four months.

Senior PCB officials welcomed the new chief upon arrival at the headquarters in Lahore, where he was set to chair the meeting of the 10-member committee.

The Management Committee consists of ten members, namely Kalim Ullah Khan, Ashafaq Akhtar, Mussadiq Islam, Azmat Parvez, Zaheer Abbas, Khurram Soomro, Khawaja Nadeem, Mustafa Ramday, and Zulfiqar Malik.

Meanwhile, Mahmood Iqbal replaced Ahmed Shehzad Farooq Rana as chief election commissioner of the board.

It is pertinent to mention here that the elections for the chairman were supposed to be held on June 27 at the PCB headquarters in Lahore.

However, stay orders from multiple courts in the country, which included the Balochistan High Court, resulted in the election being postponed.

Zaka Ashraf then chaired the first meeting of the Pakistan Cricket Board’s Management Committee today at the National Cricket Academy in Lahore on Thursday.

Director National Cricket Academy Zakir Khan and other officers warmly welcomed Zaka Ashraf on his arrival. At the beginning of the meeting, all the members of the management committee unanimously expressed their full confidence in Zaka Ashraf.

The members said that they will work together with Zaka Ashraf for the betterment of cricket, the appointment of Zaka Ashraf as Chairman Management Committee will bring laurels for Pakistan cricket.

In the meeting, Chief Financial Officer Javed Murtaza briefed the members of the committee on the PCB’s budgetary affairs. The chairman of the management committee was also briefed on important issues including the constructions of stadia, central contracts of players.

Addressing the members, Mr Zaka Ashraf said that his prime focus will be on the improvement of cricket and cricketers. He also emphasised on bringing transparency in the affairs of the cricket board.

He provided reassurance to the members that grievances regarding the elections of the Regions and Associations will be redressed and he guaranteed transparent elections for the Regions and Associations.

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ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Ramiz Raja has revealed death threats to his life and hinted at bulletproofing his vehicle for personal safety.

Ramiz, while briefing National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Inter-Provincial Coordination claimed that he faced death threats and therefore he undertook safety measures accordingly.

“I had a serious death threat,” he said. ” I purchased a vehicle keeping the threat in mind.”

“If I come in a bullet-proof car next time, it will be because of a death threat,” he mentioned in front of committee members.

It is pertinent to mention here that the NA body has summoned the Chairman PCB to get a briefing on the board’s affairs and measures taken by it to improve domestic and international cricket.

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LAHORE: The Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) held a meeting with the British High Commissioner Christian Turner to discuss the England National Men’s Cricket Team’s forthcoming tour of Pakistan, later this year.

In a high-profile meeting held at the PCB headquarters here, England’s forthcoming tour of Pakistan came under the discussion and Ramiz shared his excitement about hosting the touring side after a gap of 16 years.

“We are ecstatic to host England for the upcoming series as they’ll be touring Pakistan twice this year,” Ramiz stated.

“English fans and cricket experts are also willing to visit Pakistan to experience thrilling cricket between the two teams,” Ramiz maintained.

The British High Commissioner Turner, on the other hand, also shared his excitement regarding the upcoming tour while also claiming that the game acts as the bridge between the two nations.

“I think Cricket is in our blood and we are passionate about it. This game acts as the connecting bridge between the two nations while we are also celebrating 75 years of our friendship,” Turner stated.

It is pertinent to mention here that England will Tour Pakistan in September this year to play a seven-match T20I series before travelling back. The side will again land in the country in December to lock horns with the Green Shirts for a three-match Test series.

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