After the resignation of the Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Zaka Ashraf, the governing body is expected to have a full-time chairman next month, as per the report in PTI. Last year saw the tenure of three PCB chairmen which include Ramiz Raja, Najam Sethi, and Zaka Ashraf. Ashraf resigned from his post after Pakistan’s 3-0 loss against Australia in the three-match Test series and later a 4-1 loss in the T20I series against New Zealand.
As per reports, Punjab Province caretaker chief minister Mohsin Naqvi is well ahead in the race to become the next chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board. The affairs of the PCB have been run by an interim management committee, whose tenure will come to an end on February 4, 2024. The procedure to elect the new PCB chairman will take place after the tenure of the committee is over. The Board of Governors (BoG) of the PCB will sit together and elect the new chairman.
Pakistan Cricket Board to have new chairman after general elections
A PCB source told PTI, “The PCB should have a new chairman (Mohsin Naqvi) after the general elections (in Pakistan) on 8th February.”
The Pakistan Cricket Board on Saturday, January 27 announced the election commissioner and the acting chairman of the board, Shah Khawar, has already elected the Board of Governors (BoG) of the PCB, which will select the new chairman of Pakistan’s cricket governing body.
Pakistan’s caretaker Prime Minister and the patron in chief of the PCB Anwar ul Haq Kakar has nominated Mohsin Naqvi to the BoG, whereas another Prime Minister candidate Mustafa Ramday is also part of the BoG.
As per the reports, Mohsin Naqvi can only take over as the PCB chairman once he resigns from his post as the caretaker chief minister of Punjab. This process can only happen after the general elections in Pakistan. The source said, “But the path is now clear for electing a new chairman and until then the acting chairman and BoG will run Board affairs.”
The Pakistan Cricket Board has witnessed three chairmen in the period of the last three years. During this period the performance of the Pakistani team has only seen a dip which includes Test series losses at home against Australia and England, and also an exit from the ODI World Cup 2023. During this period, the hosting rights of the Asia Cup were snatched from Pakistan and it was later held under the hybrid model.
The Pakistan cricket team faced a humiliating whitewash against Australia in the three-match Test series they also lost against New Zealand by 4-1 in the T20I series.
There were also a lot of controversies that emerged in the Pakistan Cricket Board during Zaka Ashraf’s tenure. While few players wanted to terminate their central contracts for playing in various T20 leagues, whereas, there was also a revelation by the former Pakistani cricketer Rashid Latif, that the Pakistani players have not received their salaries for many months. Due to this, Babar Azam called Zaka Ashraf but he refused to respond to any of his calls.