Misbah ul Haq and Azhar Ali's meeting with Pak PM Imran Khan infuriates PCB and here's why

Recently, Pakistan cricket team's head coach Misbah ul Haq, Test skipper Azhar Ali and veteran batsman Mohammad Hafeez met Pakistan premier Imran Khan to discuss the revival of departmental cricket in the country. The departmental cricket in the country was scrapped by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Imran Khan's directives. However, Misbah ul Haq, Azhar Ali and Mohammad Hafeez's decision to meet the with Pakistan cricket's patron-in-chief has not gone down well with the board.

ALSO READ | Pakistan cricket: Misbah ul Haq summarizes Pakistan's tour of England, says 'Regret the results'

Pakistan cricket board chief unhappy with Misbah ul Haq for meeting Imran Khan without board's consent

The PCB was unhappy with Misbah ul Haq, Azhar Ali and Mohammad Hafeez for meeting Imran Khan without seeking their consent. According to arysports.tv, sources said that the top PCB officials are set to meet Misbah ul Haq and Azhar Ali next week, where they will question them about the meeting with Imran Khan. Besides Misbah ul Haq, Pakistan cricket board chief Ehsan Mani and CEO Wasim Khan also met Imran Khan to discuss cricket-related matters.

The three icons of Pakistan cricket tried to change the Pakistan premier's mind about the new structure, which has left more than 400 cricketers jobless. However, Misbah ul Haq, Mohammad Hafeez and Azhar Ali couldn't do so as the 67-year-old insisted that the new model was the right way to go ahead.

ALSO READ | Pakistan cricket board chief Ehsan Mani against Indian becoming ICC chief again, labels Pak better than Aus

Imran Khan said that he had to convince Misbah ul Haq, Mohammad Hafeez and Azhar Ali that the new cricket structure must be allowed to grow and become stronger. He added that every new system has its teething problems and it takes some time. However, he assured that once the new system is established, it will ensure that the raw talent they have in cricket will come through polished and groomed for international cricket.

In fact, the PCB is said to be infuriated with Misbah and Azhar as it was on Imran Khan's instructions itself that the board is implementing the new system, making consent necessary in such a case. As a result, it is likely that the board could slap showcause notices to the duo, warning them of not repeating this in the future.

Imran Khan sensationally claimed that whatever success Pakistan had so far was not because of the system. The PCB patron in chief reckoned that despite this system they won because of the immense raw talent they have. He stated that nowhere does a player graduate straight into the national team from junior or club level cricket. Khan is hopeful that Pakistan will be in a position to field a very strong team for the 2023 World Cup and do well at it due to his new system.

ALSO READ | Pakistan cricket board chief Ehsan Mani claims international teams would love visiting Pakistan for tours now

Under the revamped domestic cricket structure introduced by the PCB as guided by Imran Khan, only six regional teams will now compete in first-class cricket and other ODI and T20 tournaments, while departmental teams were eliminated from the system. The new structure is based on a three-tiered bottom-up approach according to which cricketers have a clear pathway ahead of them to progress to the top level. There have also been major changes like an increase in players' earnings, change of ball (from Dukes to Kookaburra) and upgradation of facilities.

ALSO READ | Pakistan ready for cricket with India, but not there to run behind BCCI for it: Ehsan Mani

IMAGE COURTESY: PAKISTAN CRICKET TWITTER