With Prime Minister elect Imran Khan’s inauguration only few days away, we at Daily Times hope he remembers his July 26 victory speech, in which he vowed not to engage in any sort of political victimisation. Imran Khan’s statement was widely appreciated. In recent days, the media have been speculating if the new PM will remove the incumbent head of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). As a former athlete, Imran Khan should understand better than others that a sudden change in leadership of this institution will impact Pakistani cricket negatively; and that the PCB can only perform well if it is allowed to operate autonomously. This is all the more important considering the history between Imran Khan and PCB chief Najam Sethi.
The PCB has been performing exceedingly well as of late and any interference by the government could derail the progress that has been made in recent years. Under the leadership of Sethi, international cricket has returned to Pakistan, and the Pakistan Super League (PSL) has evolved into a multi-million dollar venture that continues to grow. The combined media exposure of PSL 3 was 38 percent higher than the previous edition, and worth over $230 million. On top of this, the number of matches held locally is also growing, with eight PSL 4 matches to be held in Pakistani cities compared to three in PSL 3. The PSL series has also consistently received good reviews from sports evaluation firm Nielson Sports, which was also the first firm to do global market research for the International Cricket Council. In the past few years, the PCB leadership has also had stadiums renovated and upgraded, and continues to crack down on malpractices within the organisation.
Of course, this is all a work in progress that might get derailed if the federal government interferes needlessly. The PM elect may be a titan of the cricketing world, but Pakistani cricket, like the rest of the country, can only be saved through strong institutions that operate like well-oiled machines. It needs solid leadership and continuity of the progress. We hope Imran Khan will honour his words and allow Najam Sethi to complete his tenure. *
Published in Daily Times, August 13th 2018.