Prof Siraj Bukhari condoles Waqar Hasan’s demise

By Syed Khalid Mahmood
(Pakistan News & Features Services) 

Prof Syed Siraj-ul Islam Bukhari, the longest serving office-bearer of the Karachi City Cricket Association (KCCA), has been saddened by the death of Pakistan’s former Test batsman, Waqar Hasan, who passed away recently in Karachi recently following a brief illness. 

“The passing away of Waqar Hasan, the last surviving member of Pakistan’s first-ever Test team, has made the entire cricket community sorrowful and heavy-hearted,” Prof Siraj Bukhari, who served the KCCA as President for four years after being its elected Honorary Secretary for a staggering three decades,” observed in his condolence message. 

“Having worked closely with him for a number of years, I am deeply grieved and depressed at his tragic demise. He captained the Karachi teams of which I used to be the manager. We had extremely cordial relationship as he was such a fantastic cricketer and a thorough gentleman,” the former KCCA boss recalled. 

“Besides being a stylish middle-order batsman and a safe fielder, he was an able leader who inspired his teammates with his positive approach. After being Pakistan’s highest run-getter in the inaugural Test series against India in 1952-53, he continued to score consistently at the international level and was regarded as a dependable batsman. He was certainly one of the pillars on whom the Pakistan team rested in the formative years,” Prof Siraj Bukhari complimented. 

“After hanging his boots and later making a name for himself in the business arena, he returned to cricket in the role of an administrator. He also served with distinction as the Honorary Treasurer of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB),” he added. 

“Acclaimed as one of the most respected personalities of Pakistan cricket, the soft-spoken Waqar Hasan has left a legacy and he will always be remembered and missed,” Prof Siraj Bukhari concluded.

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Prof Siraj Bukhari welcomes return of Test cricket in Karachi

By Syed Khalid Mahmood
(Pakistan News & Features Services)

Prof Syed Siraj-ul-Islam Bukhari, hailed as the father figure of Karachi cricket for a long time, has expressed his joy at the return of Test cricket in Pakistan after the gap of whole decade.

“I would like to congratulate the Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), Ehsan Mani, for bringing international cricket back to Pakistan with a bang. The entire cricket fraternity of the country is thrilled by watching the cricketers perform in our own backyard,” Prof Bukhari, who has been the President as well as the Secretary of the Karachi City Cricket Association (KCCA) for a number of years, remarked in a statement soon after Pakistan had completed a resounding victory over Sri Lanka in the second and final Test, to clinch the series 1-0, at the National Stadium, Karachi, on December 23.

“The icing on the cake is the impressive performance of Pakistan’s team in the field which enabled them to win the Karachi Test against Sri Lanka at the National Stadium so handsomely. The victory in home Test series really tastes sweeter,” he added. 

“In fact I am running short of words in praising the PCB and the Pakistan cricket team for coming up with such sterling performance. They deserve the credit for doing it against the heaviest of odds,” the former KCCA chief reckoned. 

“The accomplishments of opener Abid Ali, who scored a century in each of his first two Tests, will be remembered for a long time. Similarly the firepower of the young fast bowlers, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah, augurs well for the future of the Pakistan cricket,” he complimented. 

“It’s such a pleasing sight to watch Test cricket being played again at the National Stadium, Karachi, after 10 years. This has been the happy hunting ground for Pakistan ever since the first Test was played here in 1955. Hopefully we will continue having international matches on a regular basis and every foreign team will be willing to come and play in future,” Prof Bukhari observed. 

It may be recalled that Prof Syed Siraj-ul-Islam Bukhari had remained the face of Karachi cricket for decades. He used to be in the forefront in organizing international matches in Karachi year after year. He has also held important positions in the PCB with domestic cricket organization being his forte.

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Ali Abbas Hasanie honoured in Karachi

By Syed Khalid Mahmood
(Pakistan News & Features Services)

The veteran cricket administrator, Ali Abbas Hasanie, was showered with praise by comrades and contemporaries in a reception hosted in his honour by the former top functionaries of the Karachi City Cricket Association (KCCA) on November 23. 

Prof Siraj-ul-Islam Bokhari, a former President and Secretary of the KCCA, and Akram Khan, ex-Joint Secretary, KCCA, arranged the ceremony to recognize the visiting official, having moved to Canada almost five decades ago. It was attended by a large number of Test and first-class cricketers, umpires and organizers. 

It was recalled that Hasanie, one of the founding members of the National Sports Club, established in 1960, had quickly made his mark in the city cricket circles as he worked closely and enthusiastically with Haji Iftikhar, who was one of the zonal chairmen of the KCCA. 

It was disclosed that, upon relocating in Canada way back in 1970, he has remained actively involved in cricket’s organizational matters besides pursuing his career as a management consultant. 

In 2011, he was elected President of the Board of Control for Cricket in Canada (BCCC) which was earlier known as the Canadian Cricket Federation (CCF). 

“My most significant contribution has been reviving international cricket in Canada against the heaviest of odds as I was instrumental in laying the turf pitch at the stadium in Toronto which paved the way for the Indo-Pak ODI series by the name of Sahara Cup to take place there in the 1990s,” Hasanie revealed in his speech on the occasion. 

In his welcome address, Prof Siraj-ul-Islam Bokhari, whose name remained synonymous with Karachi cricket for decades, became little emotional as he expressed his delight at finding a lot of retired and forgotten personalities who had served the cause of the sport diligently in the past. 

The widely respected umpire, Mahboob Shah, who earned the honour of becoming the first Pakistani to stand in a World Cup final, in his address, regretted that the cricket authorities in the country were unwilling to arrange for the training of the umpires which didn’t allow them to break into the elite ICC panel. 

Brig (Retd) Salahuddin, who is still remembered for having uprooted the stumps of the legendary opener Hanif Muhammad in a first-class match, in his speech, expressed the hope that the cricket organizers of today will learn and derive inspiration from their illustrious predecessors in order to carry forward their mission. 

The vote of thanks was presented by Jamil Ahmed while Ghulam Muhammad conducted the ceremony. Prominent among those present on the occasion were former Test cricketers Aftab Baloch, Jalaluddin and Danish Kaneria besides international umpires Saleem Badr and Masroor Ali.

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Nadeem Omar delighted with Quetta performance

By Syed Khalid Mahmood 
(Pakistan News & Features Services)

Nadeem Omar, the owner of Quetta Gladiators franchise, has expressed his delight at the phenomenal rise in the standard of cricket during the last few years in the western province of Balochistan, whose capital in Quetta.

“At the time of the bidding for Quetta Gladiators about four years ago we were being advised by all quarters not to do so because of the lack of cricketing talent and resources in that province. But we had our own parameters of assessment and we went ahead with our plans. The results are there for everybody to see,” he observed in an interview at the sidelines of prize distribution ceremony of the 34th edition of Karachi Gymkhana Omar Associates Ramazan Festival Cricket Tournament 2019 at the KG Cricket Ground on June 3. 

Nadeem Omar, who was the chief guest of the evening, felt particularly pleased with the title-clash between Heroes Cricket Club Quetta and Quetta Gladiators Academy which highlighted the rising standard of sport in Balochistan.

“Isn’t it quite remarkable that both the finalists of one of the leading tournaments of the country belonged to Quetta? Their outfits comprised of players from all over the province and what a splendid performance they have come up with,” he complimented. 

Nadeem Omar, who was elected as President of the Karachi City Cricket Association (KCCA) last year, didn’t mince words in stating that integrated efforts were needed to groom the talent and polish the skills of the young cricketers. 

“Quetta, like rest of the country, has always been blessed with talented cricketers. They have come of age now after being taken care of during the last few years only. Obviously this is just the beginning. They will be hitting headlines in future,” he thought. 

“The enthusiasm and passion for cricket in Balochistan augur well for the future of the sport in the country. They will make the game more competitive and the national team will only become stronger,” he believed. 

He agreed that the title triumph of Quetta Gladiators in the fourth edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL-4) has been help in further motivating the cricketers of Balochistan in particular.

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Value addition of KG Ramazan Festival with KCCA blessings, sponsors’ support

By Syed Khalid Mahmood
(Pakistan News & Features Services)

The 34th edition of Karachi Gymkhana Ramazan Festival Cricket Tournament 2019 for the Omar Associates Trophy, has the blessings of the Karachi City Cricket Association (KCCA) as well as the sponsorship support of some enterprising corporations.

The details about the four-week end, due to commence on the first day of the holy month, were shared in a media briefing here at the Gymkhana’s Banquet Hall on May 2. 

The tournament, being contested by 16 teams, having been divided equally in four groups for the preliminary rounds, will be offering a record prize money of Rupees one and half million. 

The champions will be claiming a handsome purse of Rupees eight lacs while the runners-up will be collecting Rupees four lacs. Speaking on the occasion, 

Nadeem Omar, President, KCCA, and Managing Director, Omar Associates, announced that he would use his good offices for the live telecast of the knockout games of the tournament which could not yet be finalized by the organizers. 

“The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) may advise us to pay an additional charges of Rupees one million for beaming the event but we would not burden the participating teams,” he declared while questioning the logic of imposing fee for organizing club tournaments.

The KCCA President recognized that the KG Ramazan Festival, being held every year for more than three decades, has played a lead role in the promotion of T20 cricket and others took cue from them at a later stage. 

Highlighting the role of media in boosting image of the tournament, he also complimented the sponsors for having joined hands with the organizers in taking the tournament to another level. 

“Sponsors and media, besides management, play vital role and these elements are firmly behind the monumental success of the KG Ramazan Festival which has gone from strength to strength over the years,” he acknowledged.

Nadeem Omar recalled that the KG Ramazan Festival was hitting headlines even in those days when satellite channels were not there but the print media accorded it due respect and covered the matches extensively.

Tabish Javed (Master Oil), Abida Hasanali (Soneri Bank), Khalid Mani (KFC) and Irfan-ur-Rahman (Acme Technologies & Sports Intelligence) represented their respective companies in the meeting which was also attended by Abbas Saifuddin, Valika, Chairman, Tournament Committee, and Jam Nafees Ali, Honorary Secretary Cricket, Karachi Gymkhana. 

International umpire Riazuddin, who is one of the technical committee members, revealed that the PCB fee of Rupees five lacs has already been paid by the Gymkhana authorities. 

Fawad Salim Malik, President, Karachi Gymkhana, in his brief address, spoke about the monumental role of their club in support sports in general and cricket in particular over the years.

He sounded optimistic about the installation of floodlights at the Karachi Gymkhana Cricket Ground, a project that hasn’t taken off yet despite commitments by the past leaders. 

“There are indeed some security concerns involved because the club is located in the red zone. But we are trying our level best to meet the challenges and fulfill this dream of installing floodlights at our historic cricket ground,” he added.

At the end of the media briefing the KCCA President, Nadeem Omar, performed the formal inauguration of the tournament by playing a solid forward defensive stroke.

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President-elect Nadeem Omar set to take KCCA to higher level

By Syed Khalid Mahmood
(Pakistan News & Features Services)

The President-elect of the Karachi City Cricket Association (KCCA), Nadeem Omar, has already set the ball rolling by getting in touch with the concerned quarters for implementing his plans aimed at reviving the game in a big way.

He has been elected unopposed as the KCCA President as he enjoyed overwhelming electoral support prompting his predecessor and challenger Prof Ejaz Ahmed Farooqui to withdraw his candidature the other day. 

The notification in this regard from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is being awaited and it may be delayed until polling for the slot of the KCCA Secretary is held in a few weeks. 

Nadeem Omar, a veteran sports promoter and a cricket administrator, having founded and managed successful cricket teams like Omar Associates, Omar Cricket Club and Capricorn Discount Cards, besides Quetta Gladiators, has begun his journey of transforming the KCCA into a bigger entity than it was ever before. 

The KCCA President-elect shared some of the exciting plans he has worked out to revolutionize the KCCA. He has already started making moves towards his strategic plan, covering nearly aspect of the game. 

The development of a new structure of cricket for Karachi features prominently on his agenda as he plans to have the KCCA managed as professionally as any other modern cricket association anywhere in the world. 

“First and foremost I have set the goal of reviving the KCCA Stadium in North Nazimabad. I plan to install floodlights at the ground besides improving the condition of the stadium. This would be the home of Karachi cricket,” he declared. 

“Secondly I have already spoken to the PCB to let the KCCA gets its share of space at the National Stadium where I intend to build a library and museum of Karachi cricket apart from setting up the High Performance Centre with the KCCA Academy. There are vacant spaces within the compound of the National Stadium and the KCCA is interested in using it,” Nadeem Omar disclosed. 

He has the plans for revitalizing the club cricket, with the help of its seven zones, on a war footing. He’s equally eager to launch proper cricket tournaments for schools, colleges and universities with the collaboration of the local education departments in order to engage a larger pool of students. 

“I would be interested in exposing the youngsters to matches of longer duration from an early age so that they face no problems when graduating to first-class cricket. We will have annual tournaments of three-day matches as well as T20 events,” he added. 

His plans include the development of news complexes containing a full-fledged cricket grounds where first-class matches could be played besides reviving the historic grounds like the Karachi Parsi Institute (KPI) where the legendary Hanif Muhammad played that epic knock of 499. 

Nadeem Omar emphasized on quickly developing and uploading a state-of-the-art website of the KCCA, to be updated on a daily basis, which would have details about coaches, umpires, scorers, clubs, departments, grounds, rules, women’s tournaments besides other features of general interest.

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Nadeem Omar launches presidential campaign with a bang

By Syed Khalid Mahmood
(Pakistan News & Features Services)

Nadeee Omar, a veteran sports promoter and a cricket administrator, has begun his election campaign with a bang. He announced his programme in the presence of some of the influential and venerated cricketing personalities along with a large battery of covering media professionals at the Karachi Gymkhana on October 7.

The founder and patron of the successful cricket teams like Omar Associates, Omar Cricket Club and Capricorn Discount Cards has vowed to transform the Karachi City Cricket Association (KCCA) into a bigger entity than the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), if elected as its President. 

With former Test cricketers, Salahuddin Ahmed, Sadiq Mohammad, Jalaluddin and Nadeem Khan sitting at the stage with him, lending obvious support to him, Nadeem Omar made a convincing presentation aimed at reviving the KCCA. His strategic plan, covering nearly aspect of the game, was lavishly praised. 

The development of a new structure of cricket for Karachi features prominently on his agenda as he plans to have the KCCA managed as professionally as any other modern cricket association anywhere in the world. 

The establishment of a multinational type of office where the KCCA could be headquartered with grace and dignity is on top in the list of his priorities as he also has the plans to take upon the task of building new infrastructures in each of the seven zones something on the lines of Recreation Centres which could house indoor cricket schools besides zonal offices. 

He spoke about revitalizing the club cricket on a war footing with the assistance of the sponsors. He has also looked eager to launch proper cricket tournaments for schools and colleges. 

Nadeem Omar’s plans included the development of complexes containing a full fledged cricket grounds where first-class matches could be played. He emphasized on quickly developing and uploading a state-of-the-art website of the KCCA, to be updated on a daily basis, which would have details about Coaches, Umpires, Scorers, Clubs, Departments, Grounds, Rules, Women’s Cricket and Tournaments besides other features of general interest. 

He also made a mention of setting up a central KCCA Academy besides launching the KCCA Annual Award function to recognize the various stakeholders besides the cricketers. 

Speaking on the Salahuddin Ahmed, while offering his support to Nadeem Omar, observed that the revival of school cricket was the key to discover the new talent. He recalled the 1950s and the 1960s when the cricketers were directly selected to the national team on the basis of Inter-School tournaments whose standard was highly competitive. 

The former KCCA chief selector reckoned that merit should not be compromised at any cost as he cited examples of the past when the teams picked up on the basis of open trials continued to perform well in the national tournaments. 

Sadiq Mohammad, a former Test left-handed opening batsman, was thoroughly appreciated of the plan presented by Nadeem Omar but he emphasized on the development of a top-class office for the KCCA in order to attract the sponsors. He also suggested for the improvement in the quality of pitches to produce fast bowlers. 

Jalaluddin, a former Test fast bowler and a highly qualified coach, felt that it’s high time to have the KCCA reformed and Nadeem Omar, in his opinion, was the right person, to take it to the next level. He urged the zonal officials to vote for him in order to bring about a change.

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Urdu Cricket Commentary will never be same again without Munir Hussain

By Syed Khalid Mahmood
(Pakistan News & Features Services)

Although it could not be resolved if Munir Hussain was the founder of cricket commentary in Urdu, with Bashir Ahmad Khan having his own credentials to be the one, but not many people will disagree about him being the best in business for a very long time indeed.

Munir Hussain, who immortalised himself with Urdu cricket commentary, is no more. He breathed his last in Karachi on July 29 at the age of 83. He was being missed in the commentators’ box for quite sometime due to his illness. His death has saddened the cricket community in particular. 

There were a few other facets as well which had made him one of the most sought after cricket personalities of the country. 

His weekly columns in Daily Jang, the largest circulated daily newspaper of Pakistan, which continued for decades, was read and followed with great interest. He launched his own monthly cricket magazine in Urdu by the name of ‘Akhbar-e-Watan’ in the 1970s which turned to be a success story from the outset because of its content and the variety that caught the imagination of the masses. 

‘The Cricketer Pakistan’ remained the first-choice cricket magazine for the serious-minded followers of the game but ‘Akhbar-e-Watan’ was the market leader mainly because of Munir Hussain who put together a literature of different class.

He was an enthusiastic cricketer in his younger days, having played for the Jang Cricket Club for a number of years. He also went on to play a first-class match. A right-arm medium-pacer, he played his only first class game for Qalat District in 1969-70, taking two wickets against Quetta in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy. 

He was proactive in the administration of the game for more than half a century and he was elected the President of the Karachi City Cricket Association (KCCA) in the 1990s. He has become the second former KCCA President, after Dr Mohammad Ali Shah, to have expired during the current year. 

Munir Hussain’s fame and recognition had come his way largely due to Urdu cricket commentary in which he stood head and shoulders above his contemporaries. His voice was crisp and distinct which was tailormade for radio. He did commentary for television as well for a number of years rising to the status of a legend. 

With the trio of three great commentators, Omar Kureishi, Iftikhar Ahmed and Chishty Mujahid, charming the audience with English of the highest class, it was Munir Hussain who provided it the much needed balance with his broadcasts in Urdu. That was a golden era for cricket commentary in Pakistan when these four legends were there in the box. 

Mainly because of his commentary Munir Hussain was a household name all over Pakistan. His popularity went a long way in creating a massive circulation base for ‘Akhbar-e-Watan’ which is believed to have crossed the magical figure of 50,000 copies on quite a few occasions.

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Ejaz Farooqui on a mission to have lively pitches in Karachi

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The Honorary Secretary of the Karachi City Cricket Association (KCCA), Prof Ejaz Ahmed Farooqui, has listed the preparation of lively pitches for the club matches as one of his top priorities.

Speaking as the chief guest in the inauguration ceremony of the Javed Khan Cricket Tournament, being organized by Dawood Sports, Prof Ejaz Farooqui announced that the KCCA was taking measures to prepare fast pitches in the metropolis.

“It’s vitally important to expose our youngsters to lively pitches from the grassroots level so that they face no problems whatsoever in coping with such surfaces when they graduate to the next level. A cricketer having grown up on faster pitches will have a greater chance of moving up the ladder when selected in the national team,” he reckoned.

“I really feel hurt to find the Pakistan opening batsmen failing again and again. This has been happening for quite a long time now. Even the middle-order batsmen struggle to put bat to ball when playing on pitches having bounce and pace,” the KCCA Secretary regretted.

“The remedy lies by having the national tournaments played on livelier pitches. Once the domestic matches are held on faster tracks I am sure every participating team will prompted to have such surfaces for the local matches as well. In this way we will produce cricketers, particularly batsmen, of higher quality,” Prof Ejaz Farooqui believed.

“We have to set an example for the others to follow to have our club tournaments played on sporting pitches rather than flat ones. We will not only start producing outstanding batsmen but we will also have a lot of fast bowlers coming into the limelight,” he felt

“This will bring about a revolution of sorts throughout the country as the technique of the cricketers will improve considerably. They will learn a great deal themselves when they play on surfaces where their skills will be tested,” he added.

“It’s my mission to have sporting pitches prepared in Karachi. I wish to make a contribution in the real sense of the word,” Prof Ejaz Farooqui, who transformed the KCCA Zone II with his dynamic and visionary leadership in a matter of three years or so, observed.

He has a burning desire that Karachi produces the legendary batsmen like Hanif Mohammad and Javed Miandad, whose awesome accomplishments are still talked about in the entire cricketing world.

Prof Ejaz Farooqui was himself showered with praise by all the speakers in the inauguration ceremony of the Javed Khan Cricket Tournament. He was recognized for having rewritten the history books by having a record number tournaments organized in the KCCA Zone II during his tenure as Chairman.

Prof Ejaz Farooqui, who was elected as the Secretary of the KCCA earlier this year, has now set his vision on transforming the whole of Karachi cricket and he has displayed the eagerness already to make things happen on a fast track.

He firmly believes that the game of cricket could be taken to another level for which an integrated approach of all the stakeholders was needed.

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KCCA vows to fight until dismissal of Ijaz Butt

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

In a rare show of strength the movers and shakers of the Karachi City Cricket Association (KCCA) vowed to take the fight to the camp of Ijaz Butt who was accused of having destructed the Pakistan cricket.

The trio of Prof Siraj-ul-Islam Bokhari (President), Prof Ejaz Ahmed Farooqui (Honorary Secretary) and Khalil Ahmed Nainitalwala (Vice President), backed by the zonal office-bearers, came out openly to criticize the Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) in the harshest possible manner during a media briefing at the Karachi Press Club before joining the protesting young cricketers of the city in which a couple of cricket bats were burnt.

Although it was a warm first afternoon of the Holy month of Ramazan on August 12 the intensity of the protestors was rather high and the youngsters as well as the veterans present on the occasion chanted noisy slogans against Ijaz Butt and they demanded his immediate sacking to prevent further chaos.

The KCCA Vice President, Khalil Ahmed Nainitalwala, was in a furious mood as he had come prepared in the media briefing, substantiating his claims with facts and figures while raising the voice for the cricketers of city who have been victimized by Ijaz Butt and party for the past couple of years.

“I have no hesitation in calling it the Ijaz Butt Cricket Board instead of the Pakistan Cricket Board. Similarly we have been witnessing Ijaz Butt XI and not the national team of Pakistan playing against the various teams,” he declared.

“Isn’t it a tragedy that the team, being selected on the basis of nepotism, is getting hammered and the deserving cricketers are not being provided a chance to perform? Ijaz Butt’s blue-eyed boys are in the team despite failing repeatedly while the experienced campaigners like Danish Kaneria are sent home after just one failure. Why these double standards,” he questioned.

“It’s a shame that Ijaz Butt has crossed all limits of decency. Merit seems to be a piece of paper to him. He is just not bothered to look beyond his own circle of friends. He is not perturbed with the disgusting performance of the team that was touched rocked bottom of late,” Khalil Nainitalwala highlighted.

“What a pity that the Pakistan team these days is struggling to get 100 runs in an innings? It’s mainly because the talented and deserving boys of Karachi have been ignored even after their consistent performance in the national tournaments,” he added.

“Our batsmen Asad Shafiq, Khurram Manzoor and Khalid Latif performed much better than Azhar Ali and Umar Amin who have been taken to England where they have failed miserably so far. Similarly our bowlers Tabish Khan and Anwar Ali fared better than Wahab Riaz who was selected. Our fast bowler Tanvir Ahmed, who was the leading wicket-taker in the last season, has not been played in a single game yet in England which is very sad indeed,” Khalil Nainitalwala reckoned.

“We were waiting for the better sense to prevail that’s why we didn’t register our protest openly in the past. But the stage has come where we have to raise voice for our cricketers and since we have now come out in the open we will not sit back until Ijaz Butt is dismissed,” he replied when asked about the future course of action if status quo prevailed.

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KCCA comes out in open to expose Ijaz Butt’s bias

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

I think that the officials of the Karachi City Cricket Association (KCCA) have finally realized that enough is enough and they need to come out in the open to fight for the rights of their cricketers who have been brutally treated by Ijaz Butt and his cronies.

After having condemned the biased attitude of the national selectors in their Executive Council meeting the other day, the KCCA high command, shocked and disappointed, has now decided to hold a press conference on August 12.

Prof Ejaz Ahmed Farooqui, Honorary Secretary, KCCA, has announced that the briefing will be held at the Karachi Press Club at 3 pm.

Khalil Ahmed Nainitalwala, Vice President, KCCA, will be apprising the media and the general public of the injustices to the Association and their players by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) which has actually been a one-man show for about two years now.

The KCCA officials, on a few occasions, had taken on the PCB in the past as well but their stance had generally been soft and lacked the conviction. It might be a different story to relate this time round.

There is enormous pressure from the various quarters on the office-bearers of the KCCA to bat for the victimized cricketers of the metropolis who must be feeling let down by the double standards of the national selection committee headed by Mohsin Hasan Khan.

Interestingly Mohsin, one of the most stylish opening batsmen to have played for Pakistan, himself belongs to Karachi but he looks absolutely helpless at the moment.

The best course of action for Mohsin would be to follow the examples of his predecessors Abdul Qadir and Iqbal Qasim, both of whom could only last a few months before expressing their inability to come to terms with a man called Ijaz Butt.

It would be interesting to find out if the KCCA officials still resort to diplomacy or they demonstrate the courage to call a spade a spade. I think they should display greater self-belief while safeguarding the interests of their cricketers.

The Executive Council of the KCCA has placed on record its condemnation for the biased attitude of the PCB selection committee for having totally ignored the promising lot of Karachi cricketers like Sarfaraz Ahmed, Khurram Manzoor, Khalid Latif, Faisal Iqbal and Asad Shafiq.

The Council was of the opinion that the PCB selectors had deliberately failed to consider the performances of the Karachi cricketers in the national tournaments.

They urged about the PCB authorities to review their failings and accord justice to the talented cricketers of Karachi, who despite being the national champions, feel the agony of getting deprived when it came to playing for Pakistan.

They insisted that merit alone should be the basis of the selection and Pakistan’s prestige should be the prime consideration which can only be achieved through selections based on merit and fair chance to play for all Associations.

Well the KCCA high command must be aware of the fact that there’s no such thing as the PCB authorities any more because no one else other than Ijaz Butt has any authority in running the Board.

The KCCA should be direct in their approach and they should be talking plain truth instead of wrapping it inside some dual-meaning words.

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NBP, KCCA strengthen ties to promote club cricket

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The decline in the standard of club cricket in Karachi over the years has been debated for a long time but thankfully some concrete measures have been taken of late to revive it and take it to another level.

Prof Ejaz Ahmed Farooqui, who was elected as the Honorary Secretary of the Karachi City Cricket Association (KCCA) only recently, has been championing the cause of the revival of club for the past fours years or so and his tenure as Chairman of the KCCA Zone II had witnessed unprecedented activities throughout his area of jurisdiction.

Now when he has taken over as the Secretary of the whole KCCA there are hopes that he might be able to turn it around at the city level. It remains to be seen, however, how he tackles the ‘bureaucracy’ within the Association and if he’s able to spread the mission that he had initiated in his zone about four years ago.

The KCCA is fortunate to be blessed by a ‘loyal’ friend like National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) whose officials remain committed to carrying out its corporate social responsibility in letter and spirit.

It’s very heartening for the game of cricket that, primarily due to Iqbal Qasim, NBP has continued to support the KCCA in a big way and their joint efforts at the club level would certainly yield results.

“Four years ago our institution had felt that the club cricket throughout the country was facing problems. We at NBP decided to play our part in arresting the decline and initiated an event exclusively meant for the clubs. We launched the NBP-KCCA Premier League which has now become a regular annual event. We desire to make it a model tournament on the basis of which the teams of Karachi should be selected,” Iqbal Qasim, a former Test left-arm spinner now heading the Sports and CSR wing of NBP, remarked in the opening ceremony of the 5th NBP-KCCA Premier League.

“It’s a matter of great pleasure and satisfaction that NBP has joined hands with the KCCA to hold the Premier League for the fifth year running. I am confident that cricket will benefit immensely with this venture and new talent will emerge on the scene,” Prof Ejaz Farooqui, Secretary, KCCA, observed during his speech at the Karachi Gymkhana.

The details of the 5th NBP-KCCA Premier League 2010 were unveiled by Prof Siraj-ul-Islam Bukhari, President, KCCA, having been associated with the Association as Secretary for a number of years.

The total number of participating clubs are 28, having been divided equally in seven groups. The top team of each group will be advancing to the knockout stage, starting with the quarter-finals.

All the 48 matches of the tournament, to be supervised by the best available umpires, will be played on turf pitches and those will be 50-overs-a-side contests.

The winners will be receiving a cash bonus of Rs 75,000 while the runners-up will be getting a purse of Rs 50,000. There will be cash awards for the outstanding individual performers as well.

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Prof Ejaz Farooqui desires to take Karachi cricket to next level

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The elections of the Karachi City Cricket Association (KCCA) are generally regarded as an exercise of legitimizing old wines into new bottles. But there’s a big difference this time round.

While there was not much to comment on the election of Prof Siraj-ul-Islam Bokhari as the President or the re-election of Mehdi Hasan as Treasurer but the news making the headline was the election of Prof Ejaz Ahmed Farooqui as Secretary.

Prof Ejaz Farooqui is one man, known for bringing about a change. His presence in the central leadership could lead a turnaround in the fortunes of the KCCA. He has been blessed with so many outstanding qualities that make him counted as one of the leading personalities of the country.

He has a huge responsibility now on his shoulders and not surprisingly he is as confident as ever, displaying enormous self-belief that should serve as an inspiration to his teammates in the KCCA. He has pledged to take the Karachi cricket to another level by strategizing the goals. Not many people would disagree that he does have the capability of doing it.

Having who blanked his rival Shah Riazuddin 21-0 for the post of the Secretary in the KCCA elections held on May 22, Prof Ejaz Farooqui agreed that a lot was needed to be done to promote cricket from the grassroots level in the city.

“Yes there are lot of new challenges to be met but being a firm believer of making the most of the available resources I don’t foresee problems in accomplishing the goals and promoting cricket in every nook and corner of our metropolis,” he observed in an interview after having been elected as the KCCA Secretary.

“The Zone II experience would obviously come handy. I was elected the zonal chairman during the previous KCCA elections in 2006. With the untiring support of our team we were able to rewrite the history of the zone by organizing 25 accredited tournaments in which more than 650 matches were held. From Karimabad to Surjani Town, Khuda Ki Basti and Taisar Town we succeeded in engaging our cricketers throughout the year,” Prof Farooqui remarked.

“I have gained first-hand experience of the problems being faced at the club level by interacting with the cricketers as well as the organizers on a regularly basis and we were able to overcome many of the obstacles if not all during my three and half year tenure as the zonal chairman,” he pointed out.

He agreed that he may have not have as smooth sailing being the KCCA Secretary as he had while being the KCCA Zone II Chairman.

“Yes the challenges are going to be different but the basics remain the same. If one has the will power to take on the problems and tackle them accordingly no problem could be considered too big. I will take on board all the stake-holders to take the Karachi cricket to another level,” the KCCA Secretary concluded.

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KCCA President puts his weight behind Younis Khan

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The President of the Karachi City Cricket Association (KCCA), Dr Mohammad Ali Shah, reckons that the newly installed skipper Younis Khan has the temperament and the skills to come good in the hot heat.

“Having known him closely for a number of years, I firmly believe that he has the potential to rise to the occasion. Captaining the Pakistan team presents a very big challenge to anyone but Younis is one man who has the capability to deliver,” Dr Shah stated in a recent conversation.

Dr Shah, who is also the Minister of Sports in the province of Sindh besides being the President of the Sindh Olympic Association (SOA), appeared convinced that Younis will handle the demanding situation pretty well.

“I don’t think that his batting will be affected or he will feel burdened by captaincy. He knows how to handle the pressure. A truly gifted batsman, having scored heavily for the past many years, he seems to be possessing the leadership qualities to motivate the national team whose morale is on the lower side after the defeat in the recent ODI series against Sri Lanka,” Dr Shah, who is himself an iconic figure in the field of medicine and surgery, observed.

“Younis has had very time little time at his disposal because the Sri Lankans have now returned for the two-Test series. He was appointed the national skipper soon after the debacle in the ODI series. Here is an opportunity for him to lead by example and turn it around,” he believed.

“Younis is basically an enterprising cricketer. He has batted well in all parts of the world, having scored consistently against the strongest of bowling attacks. He has been rated as one of the best number three batsmen in the business. He needs to continue scoring heavily because his team would be looking forward to him. He is the senior most batsman in the side and he will need to bring all his experience into play to lead from the front,” Dr Shah stated.

The words of encouragement from Dr Shah should be a source of inspiration for Younis, who was appointed as captain of Pakistan soon after Shoaib Malik had stepped down following 234-run defeat at the hands of Sri Lanka in the third ODI at the Qaddafi Stadium.

Younis was indeed the automatic choice to take over provided he was willing to accept the job. He had been offered the national captaincy in the past as well but he had made a mess of the opportunity that came his way.

It was described as a collective decision of the PCB to appoint Younis as the skipper once Shoaib Malik was out of the way. 

Younis was playing the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy match for his employers Habib Bank Limited (HBL) at the Qaddafi Stadium when he was summoned for a meeting with the PCB chairman, Ijaz Butt. According to the reports the meeting didn’t last more than 15 minutes and the middle-order batsman consented to lead the national team without having a second thought.

Probably in order to make the new skipper a little more comfortable, the PCB Chairman, had ruled out the possibility of having separate captains for Tests and One-day Internationals as Younis was installed as captain for Tests as well as ODIs for an indefinite period. 

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