Wasim, Waqar, Mushtaq not to go to India (27 Apr 1997)

27 April 1997

Wasim, Waqar, Mushtaq not to go to India

By Ilyas Beg

LAHORE, April 26: Three star players, captain Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis and Mushtaq Ahmad, will not be available for the Pakistan cricket team which will be participating in the quadrangular Independence Cup Cricket Tournament being organised by India from May 9 to 28.

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chief Executive Majid Khan, while addressing a Press conference after the Council meeting at the Qadhafi Stadium on Saturday, said that the team for the important contest will be finalised within a few days. He said that selection committee

chairman Salim Altaf had gone to Karachi to consult his two colleagues, Zaheer Abbas and Sikandar Bakht, about the formation of the team and was expected to hand over the names of the selected players to the PCB soon. The newly-appointed PCB Public Relations adviser Lt.-Col. (retd.) Rafi Nasim said that the names of the officials of the India-bound side would also be announced along with the names of the players.

While replying to a question from this reporter Majid Khan said that besides the commitments of the three star players with their English counties, another reason for their non-inclusion in the Pakistan team was that they were not fully fit. Captain Wasim Akram is contracted to play for Lancashire and is also having shoulder-problem. Waqar Younis has signed a lucrative contract with Glamorgan and is also nursing a hairline fracture of his foot. Mushtaq Ahmad is to play for his county Somerset and also has a recurrence of knee-trouble which had necessitated an operation after the Sahara Cup in Canada last year.

However, things are not totally gloomy. The reliable opener Saeed Anwar has informed the PCB that he had fully recovered from sickness which had sidelined him from the team that played in Sharjah Cup and is now busy playing the second Test against Sri Lanka. Incidentally, Saeed Anwar was doing his running and physical training at the Qadhafi Stadium on Saturday afternoon. While talking to reporters in the ground immediately after the Press conference, the diminutive, left-hand opener said that he was doing full training these days and if selected, he would try his best to play to the best of his ability in India.

In all, 12 or 13 members attended the Council meeting. Conspicuous by his absence was the Lahore City Cricket Association (LCCA) president Aamir Hayat Rokari, who informed the PCb that he was "unwell". The next meeting of the PCB Council will be held in the first week of June next. Majid Khan said that during that meeting, officials of the Pakistan "A" team, which was to tour abroad, would also be finalised. Majid Khan and the PCB chairman Zulfiqar Ali Bokhari will be going to Sri Lanka on an invitation from the Board of Control for Cricket in Sri Lanka (BCCSL) and are expected to return home on May 1 .

The PCB Council also endorsed the decision to raise the remuneration of the Pakistani cricketers by 30 per cent. The players would get their raised fees for the tours since their visit to Zimbabwe in 1996. For The Management of affairs of junior cricket, the Council also approved appointment of Test opener Agha Zahid. He will share burden of Test star Haroon Rashid.

Majid Khan also answered questions from the mediamen. He explained that Pakistan-India-Lanka-Committee (PILCOM) auditing of accounts was a complicated and time-taking process. The Sixth World Cricket Cup was a gigantic event which involved a lot many national and international companies and departments. Renovation of the venues had also involved many. A meeting of the auditors was due but could not be held soon due to absence of treasurer of the PCB, who was away from the country. The auditors were also to visit India to finalise quite a few things. The arbitration of dispute for World Cup matches' telecast in India between Doordarshan and World-Tel had not been done by N. P. K. Salve as yet. All this was also delaying the auditing of accounts of the PCB for 1995-96.

While replying to a question, Majid Khan said that improvements in the Qadhafi Stadium have been envisaged for smooth and better organisation of international matches.

Source:: Dawn (https://xiber.com/dawn/)