The ad nauseam cycle of hiring and firing at the PCB headquarters is becoming increasingly interesting and farcical day by day. To the point that no one is cognizant of which of the two has outpaced the other. For instance, within the realm of Chief Selectors alone, four changes have been made since last December, when Mohammad Wasim with his famous laptop was sacked. In what was a surprising turn of events, the Cricket Board of Pakistan unveiled a three-member support committee for the Chief Selector, featuring Kamran Akmal, Rao Iftikhar Anjum, and Salman Butt. In what was a more surprising turn of events, PCB ousted Salman Butt mere hours after his hiring.
The need to get ‘consultant members’ on board
If the creation of job opportunities was a reason to introduce these positions and fill them immediately with ex-players, it was not the sole factor. As per the Pakistan Cricket Board and Wahab Riaz himself, the members were called in to assist the Chair of the Selection Committee in identifying the talent in the domestic circuit. However, their purpose is limited to providing their feedback to the Selection Committee, which already has five members, while not making any decisions themselves.
A public backlash, which was expected by everyone but the Board itself, drowned the world of Pakistan Cricket rather quickly. The inclusion of new members to an already extensive committee was eclipsed by the names that were announced. While Kamran Akmal and Rao Iftikhar Anjum also received their fair share of raised eyebrows, it was another name that sparked the actual outrage.
Butt’s appointment and a huge, (un)expected uproar
Salman Butt, Pakistan’s former left-handed opener and Test captain, still is deemed as the trauma stimulus for the cricket fans in the country. Many of these aficionados seem to not have moved a single day from the most funereal Test match Pakistan ever played. Butt, the protagonist of the worst spot-fixing scandal in the history of Pakistan cricket, was hired for an official position by PCB for the first time since the aforementioned event. This hiring not only saw outside fingers being pointed at the current managing committee but the reports of internal conflicts threatening the cricket governing body also took rounds.
A small group of people also started chanting at the top of their lungs about the lack of ethnic and regional diversity in the Board, alleging a bias towards one province over others in the country. This sentiment was exacerbated by the fact that all three appointments hailed from the Punjab province.
Why has PCB ousted Salman Butt?
Amidst all this, PCB resorted to the self-learned disastrous art of making panic decisions. In a matter of 32 hours, the Chief Selector convened a press conference on what he called an ‘urgent basis’. To everyone’s surprise, but to no one’s confusion, Riaz broke the news of reversing his decision to hire the former opening batter.
“People were talking all sorts of stuff about me and Salman Butt. Therefore, I am reverting the decision and I have already spoken to Salman Butt and I have told him that he cannot be part of my team,” Riaz told reporters.
Despite his continual reassurances that the decision belonged solely to him, Riaz launched into a tirade about media propaganda, asserting that it was due to this influence that PCB ousted Salman Butt. He also added that media houses were accusing him of nepotistically hiring Butt despite his tainted reputation but the appointment was based on his understanding of the game.
Was the uproar justified?
Pakistan won a Test match against Australia after 15 years in the southpaw’s first game as a captain. Shahid Afridi resigned from the Test format almost surprisingly almost a month before the unfortunate event, handing the reins of the team to him, a young prospect and a belligerent batter. All seemed well. A hope of better days sparkled in the eyes of fans. Only to be torn away by an infamy, the disgrace of which took years to go away.
It took more years to build a new team again. A team no one would want to nourish under the guidance of the person who shattered the previous one into smithereens years ago. The question of whether this vehement response was justified lacks a definitive answer. Nevertheless, myriad reasons justify the actions taken by the PCB.
