Umpires postings for Sharjah defended

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Monday defended its decision to reduce Riazuddin to a TV umpire in the forthcoming Test series against the West Indies at Sharjah.

"The recommendation of National Umpiring Council were implemented. The council comes under the Cricket Management Committee," director of the PCB Brig Munawwar Rana said from Lahore.

Riazuddin was not given a field umpire's posting despite being Pakistan's representative in the International Cricket Council (ICC) panel of umpires. Riazuddin has got the most foreign assignments as compared to his compatriot Mian Aslam who has been given the first Test.

The second Test will be supervized by Shakeel Khan who was a TV umpire for the second Test against England in 2000 on tourists protest.

Riazuddin was also not given any of the three one-day internationals for which Saleem Badar, Asad Rauf, Nadeem Ghauri and Aleem Dar were named.

The PCB official admitted that it might hurt Riazuddin's future postings by the ICC, but stressed that the board only implemented the council's recommendations.

The chairman of the CMC, Iqbal Qasim, said Riaz was not given the Test just to give others an opportunity.

"The ICC is to constitute an elite eight-umpire panel from April. Others have been awarded an opportunity to show how good they are in decisions making," he said.

The official, when inquired what was the criterion for recommendation, repeated that the PCB only implemented the recommendations.

The spokesman said the PCB will bear all the expenses of the Test series. "The PCB, being the host board, will bear all the expenses. This is the most comprehensive answer I can give," he said when inquired of the details and break-up.

Interestingly, the PCB has already announced that the Sharjah series will be a "no profit no loss" venture with the marketing department yet to reveal its home work and the board to audit the expenses.