Daily Times

PCB appoints talent scouts for six cricket associations

LAHORE: With an objective to identify hidden talent across the country and to bring them into the national framework, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Wednesday announced the appointment of Talent Scouts in each of the six cricket associations.

The appointments were made following a robust recruitment process, for which the advertisement was posted in July and the interviews were conducted by the relevant officials, the board said in a statement.

It said that the six talent scouts, in collaboration with the cricket association head coaches, will follow all age-group cricket at the club, schools, colleges, districts and divisions levels before holding coaching and training camps in their respective regional academies for the outstanding talent as part of the PCB’s Development Programme.

The board said the best-talented players from the lot will then be gathered at the National High-Performance Centre to further hone their skills under the supervision of foreign coaches and prepared for various PCB tournaments, including the Pakistan Junior League.

The six scouts will also be part of the Junior Selection Committee, which will be headed by Muhammad Wasim, it mentioned.

“With Wasim also heading the National Selection Committee, this will ensure the progression of the quality talent is always available on the dashboard, meaning these players will have a smooth transition from development events to major competitions.”

Abdur Rehman (Central Punjab), Ahmer Saeed (Sindh), Aamer Nazir (Southern Punjab), Mohammad Salman (Northern), Sanaullah Baloch (Balochistan) and Wajahatullah Wasti (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa). Javed Hayat will be the coordinator of the scouts.

Rehman played in 22 Tests and 31 ODIs from 2006-2014, Saeed captained Pakistan U19 and featured in 39 first-class matches, and Nazir played six Tests and nine ODIs from 1993-1995.

Salman represented Pakistan in 10 internationals in 2011, Baloch played in 27 first-class matches from 2001-2009, and Wasti featured in six Tests and 15 ODIs for Pakistan in the 1999-2000 season.