PCB subjects national team selection to domestic cricket

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has decided to make it a must for players to participate in domestic cricket for inclusion in the national team.

The decision was taken during a meeting chaired by PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi at the National Cricket Academy in Lahore on Monday, PCB said in a press release.

The meeting occurred following Pakistan’s horror run at the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024. The Men in Green were eliminated from the marquee event in the group-stage following two loses to the United States of America (USA) and India.

During the meeting, participants focused on strengthening domestic cricket in the country as Mohsin Naqvi gave principled approval to the plan aimed at promoting quality domestic cricket.

The PCB chairman announced a plan to organise domestic tournaments from the club level to the national level.

While directing PCB officials to groom domestic players, he emphasised the need for experienced coaches to train the new talent to enhance their skills.

“Performance, fitness, and merit will be the key criteria for advancing players,” Naqvi said.

The Pakistan Cricket Board will hold tournaments for all three formats of the game to promote quality domestic cricket in the 2024-25 season.

In a move to improve the standard of coaching, the PCB will appoint a master coach to train domestic cricket coaches.

According to the PCB, the participants of the meeting agreed that the selection criteria for the national team will be based on performance and fitness showcased in the domestic events.

The meeting participants also reviewed the domestic cricket structures of various high-performing cricket nations.

Earlier this month, Naqvi had said the defeat against India was disappointing in every way and that the team needed a major surgery.

“It seemed that a minor surgery would suffice for the Pakistan cricket team, but after the extremely poor performance, it has become clear that the team needs major surgery,” the PCB chairman said during a press conference after Pakistan’s defeat to India on June 9.