Pakistan cricket's future, uncertain?

Pakistan cricket has been in freefall for more than a year, failing miserably against every opposition other than Zimbabwe and suffering an early exit from the 2003 World Cup. One can only hope it plunges no deeper in this 20-year low.

Reading the media hype before the first game against the Aussies, Pakistan cricket fans remained optimistic of resurgence, hoping that the World Cup was ideal for that, but it never came. The patience of the passionate but now frustrated public has run out and there is an outcry for immediate and dramatic remedies.

The authorities will need to solve the problem with the current lot of players who, after the series of losses have lost faith in themselves and their levels of determination and commitment have gone. Persistence with old warriors has meant little new talent has come through, and when these experienced players fail, there is no one to turn to. The present side has an average age of 28 which is rather high when their past strength lay in the exuberance of youth.

It is time to give serious thought to a complete re-structuring of the team - bidding farewell to the old faces and letting the youngsters take over. Wasim, Waqar, Inzamam, Rashid and Saeed have been great servants of Pakistan cricket but now best advised to retire with dignity than face an unceremonious exit. Some media reports mention the possibility of Moin Khan being brought back as captain, or Wasim Akram reported as wanting to continue for another year. While both may be capable, such short term solutions will not help Pakistan cricket for the future.

Now is the time to hand over the reigns to a younger skipper, the options being Youhana, Younis Khan or Saqlain, and then to build a young side around him. The greatest advantage of introducing new players is they have not been sullied as part of a losing team; morale is high and they will remain committed to cricket as they have a point to prove, not past laurels to rest on.

The 'powers that be' need also to think about the future of the 'never got there stars' who have been tried out long enough but have failed to show any signs of improvement or maturity. Afridi for one, has been given every possible opportunity to prove himself but another promising all-rounder must be given a go. Pakistan should observe and learn from the Australians, where they have built a team around specialists, not 'bits and pieces' players.

Unlike Wasim's thoughts published in the press, I firmly believe there is a great pool of talent in domestic cricket and deserving candidates should be given every chance to prove themselves. The PCB, instead of appointing more committees to study the Pakistan debacle at the World Cup would be better advised to start training and selection nets right away and shortlist the players - the domestic season is almost over, the weather is cool and the time ripe.

Yes, in the formative phase the 'new' side may suffer due to lack of experience but by the time more important events come along they will have matured and the selectors been able to identify the players of the future. The various possibles are:
Batsmen: Yousuf Youhana, Younis Khan, Faisal Iqbal, Misbah-ul-Haq, Naved Latif, Taufeeq Umar, Hasan Raza, Imran Nazir, Imran Farhat and more.
Bowlers: Mohammed Sami, Mohammed Zahid, Shoaib Akhtar, Saqlain Mushtaq, Danish Kaneria, Irfan Fazil and more.
All-rounders: Abdul Razzaq, Azhar Mahmood, Naved-ul-Hasan, Yasir Arafat, Shoaib Malik.
Wicket-keepers: Kamran Akmal, Humayun Farahat and Atiq-uz-Zaman.

The above are just a few of the 'possibles' with many more waiting in the wings. The choice of wicket-keeper is also a source of concern, the selectors need to find the ideal balance between sheer 'glovemanship' and talent as a genuine batsman. Kamran Akmal is one who fits those requirements perfectly as he showed in the tours to Zimbabwe and South Africa. He deserves an extended run to cement his place in the squad as the lead wicket-keeper.

All these drastic measures may be in vain as it is finally up to the players to perform. No amount of coaching can change the way they think unless sufficient motivation and more importantly, cricket education is provided. It is easy to pick up 'spoken english' playing county or league cricket in England but where are the psychological skills to be learnt that are part and parcel of modern cricket?

Admittedly, English county cricket provides a lot of training but these days, not many foreign players get to captain a side to learn the rest of the required skills because players are picked to perform a particular role. Imran Khan and Wasim Akram learnt a lot more being skippers of their county but this chance is not available to all.

This is the 'essential education' the PCB needs to provide the young talent, for many of our players do not have much formal education and little mental toughness to face the rigours of international cricket. This is key if we are to groom professional attitudes in our cricketers; sheer talent is not enough, we need players who have been trained to think of their team and not just for their place in the team.

They need to learn control of emotions and attitude, not crumble when the going gets tough - defend stoutly and fight when some of the top order batsmen are downed early or when they get tonked about by Tendulkar's magic, get back to bowl a tight line and length to make things tougher.

That's what I am on about, professionalism not raw talent and this is what needs to be learnt through proper 'cricket education'.

It is high time our cricket bosses too show a greater deal of commitment and prove themselves through accepting healthy criticism rather than rest on the glory of what they have done for grounds, floodlights, academies or grass-root cricket in Pakistan. One does feel for them as it is true a lot of development work was done, but the essentials of building a professional team was perhaps underestimated. Instead of accepting defeat, Pakistan's cricket managers need a proactive 'reaction' and come out of their corner fighting to set things right.

As frustrated and disappointed as cricket fans may be after the World Cup, they will soon forget and all ready to cheer as soon as they see Pakistan cricket return to its rightful status at the top of international cricket.

Ed: If readers wish to correspond with the author, please email Taha Noor