Opinion | Guest Column >> Poor leadership breeds poor results A captain who doesn't merit his place, a coach who isn't delivering the needed results, and a board that doesn't know how to govern. Pakistan have plenty going against them of late Ramiz Raja July 25, 2008 Malik and Lawson have both flattered to deceive so far © AFP Rarely has Pakistan been as sidelined in world cricket as it is currently. There are reasons on and off the field for this, but in both cases the fault is that of weak leadership. Shoaib Malik is a good guy but he has not created a winning environment for the team on the field. If you look at teams such as Australia or South Africa, you can see that there is a winning environment in place. Under Malik, players have felt left out and not felt involved in strategy-making. There isn't that sense of cohesion, and that is something the captain is responsible for. The worry is that he has been in the job for over a year now and the concerns refuse to go away. There has been nothing exciting about his captaincy. He also doesn't come across as a particularly astute leader and players crib that they are dropped from the team for reasons other than those to do with on-field performance. If that is true, there are severe problems in the dressing room. Every captain needs the respect and support of his team; maybe Malik isn't getting that. Above all, he doesn't hold his place in the side in either Tests or one-day internationals. If he is bowling well and often, then at least in the ODI side he can contribute. But in Tests his technique will be found out against the likes of Australia and South Africa. For these reasons I feel the captaincy should be given to someone else, someone who holds his place in both formats currently: someone like Misbah-ul-Haq. Misbah's batting since the India tour has been excellent, and he holds a place in all three forms of the game. He comes across as a mature individual, he is educated, and the little we saw of him as captain - when he stood in against India in the Asia Cup - was impressive. It hasn't helped Malik that his coach has been a touch disappointing. We weren't expecting miracles from Geoff Lawson, but perhaps a little more by way of a change of culture. I was hoping he would bring that Aussie mentality to Pakistan, that winning attitude. I was expecting him to work on the little things that matter big, like running between the wickets, or fitness, or clamping down on extras - which as an ex-fast bowler he really should have done. Neither has he instilled in his players that sense of hurt you are supposed to feel when you've lost a game. And he doesn't seem to have helped fine-tune Malik as a leader. In short, he has been rather disappointing. The results have not been coming and the team is still beset with inconsistencies. To top it all, he is clearly getting frustrated as was evident from his little spat with the media during the Asia Cup. Weak leadership off the field by the PCB is not helping either. Many players are hurt at the way the administration is dealing with them, as the exodus of players to the ICL shows. Danish Kaneria's recent comments about the possibility of his playing for England also reveal some disappointment at his treatment at the hands of the board and selectors. The game has changed so much now and there are so many more avenues and options open to players, as well as much more money. Previously there was nothing like the IPL or the ICL to deal with. If you don't manage all these things as a board, you will suffer. The PCB wants to govern but it doesn't know how to. It wants to discipline players but it doesn't know how to. The board is not on the ball in so many situations: they are forever reacting rather than being proactive.     The PCB wants to govern but it doesn't know how to. It wants to discipline players but it doesn't know how to. The board is not on the ball in so many situations: they are forever reacting rather than being proactive   Take the Mohammad Asif doping case as an example. Asif is obviously completely at fault for the mess he finds himself in. He has played enough to realise what is good for him and his cricket and what is not. But a share of the blame must go to the PCB for not working on an irritant like Asif closely enough. As the employers they take some blame; maybe they took him for granted. The biggest disaster has been that the board hasn't stuck to its guns on major issues. Whenever something has happened - as with the first doping scandal - they've taken a tough call initially only to turn around subsequently. They have just not applied consistently strong policies. Another example is their confusion over the vice-captaincy: in the last year they have had four men in the job. What they need is a panel of ex-cricketers around them that could help them in their cricketing decisions. There is nothing wrong with non-cricketers running the board, as you need men with solid administrative experience for that. But they often falter in cricketing decisions and so an advisory panel with ex-cricketers, like there was with the IPL, is not a bad idea. I am also worried that there might be a lack of back-up talent in Pakistan currently. No new player coming up has really caught my eye: the fast bowlers are not that fast and the batsmen have technical deficiencies. The whole system needs an overhaul, especially at the lower levels where there is far too much politicking happening. Perhaps, though, the real question is whether there is no talent at all or whether that talent is not being screened and utilised properly. Is talent being given its due or is it just not there? The only way out currently is to hope for some exciting cricketer suddenly appearing from a small town, like Asif did, and pin your hopes on that miracle. © Cricinfo

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Posted by Nipun on July 27 2008, 07:21 AM GMT

Pakistan cricket wil never be like it was during the 1990s,because,as pointed out,the on-field & off-field leadership is non-existent.Malik showed promising signs in the World T20,but thereafter has been invisible as a captain.Geoff Lawson-the less said the better.Pakistan cricket won't do with a massive overhauling;it needs COMPLETE overhauling.Apart from Younus Khan & Mohammad Yousuf,& to a large extent currently,Misbah,no other player can claim an assured place for 3-4 games in either test or ODI line-up.In the end,it's just a case of the players not being really good enough.Had the Wasims,Waqars & Inzamams been playing,Pakistan cricket would have stood up irrespective of what was happening in the background.

Posted by Krishna3 on July 27 2008, 02:51 AM GMT

With the retirement of Wasim Akram, Pakistan team never appeared to be dangerous with killer instinct. Till 5 years back there was a natural supply of talent but now it is not that frequent anymore. I hope Imran Khan quits politics and starts handling all the affairs of pakistan cricket, i.e., administration, selection,coaching and the rest.

Posted by Many_Doubts on July 26 2008, 21:27 PM GMT

The troubles of Pakistan cricket started when they, trying to be more like the Australians, put a selection process in place that draws exclusively upon the system of junior/county teams. The greatest names of Pakistan cricket were not prepackaged glitter, ready for application - they were diamonds in the rough, picked up the discerning eyes of the greats themselves. Waqar Younis and Wasim Akram and Miandad and countless others were discovered...not developed. True, other teams have found success by using the kind of structured selection system we have now, but in the end you have to be who you are amd you have to play to your strengths. Organization and structure are not the PCB's strengths. The old way of doing this lacked transparency and, sometimes, fairness. People with potential never saw the field. But it worked. Since the last of those discovered superstars have left, Pakistan has been medicore - it will continue to be until it is once again true to itself.

Posted by MoSSes on July 26 2008, 11:42 AM GMT

A very well written article. I deffinately agree with fact that a captian before doing anything must cement his place in the team. Its ok if his batting is going through a bad patch, Malik is soo talented that he can cover that up with his offspin and his agile fielding. Aparently he lost the flair, he used to have before. May be the ELDERS of PCB failed at grooming him for his job. I would strongly suggest PCB should carry out captiancy lectures every month. Invite likes of Imran Khan, Wasim Akram, Rashid Latif, Inzi, Ramiz, Javed, Zaheer Abbas.. I know not all the above were ever credited for their leadership skills, but atleast, they have been there, and learned the skill of leadership. As far as the board is concerned, It needs a major overhaul too.. Of all the money tht they pay to our soo called technocrats, may be they should pay ex first class cricketers some chunk and let them go first class games and point out the talent, if PCB is too hesitant in inviting them to the academy

Posted by SaadSid on July 26 2008, 06:38 AM GMT

Mr. Raja why is cricket deemed to be so "scientific"? when our issues require simple solutions. For instance for captaincy: appoint Misbah for 2 years (Younis is optional only if he behaves serious) and train Salman Butt as vice. For the board: instead of extra panel of experts, why not just hire recognized ex-cricketers (played more than 10 tests) in the board? Sadly our board and selectors comprise of "utterly unknown" non-cricketing people, whose vision can not match with an Austrailian under-14. For the Coach: it should be a "respected" Pakistani Cricketer (so many around). As any foreign coach with Laptop will remain a helpless "cohesion" failure until he learns Urdu. Lastly for Talent Hunt: We never had any screening system but by mircale we got Inzaman, Waqar and Aqib. Since miracles have stopped so a domestic talent hunt system should be in place before our team duly gets the tag of "The Most Least Talened Pakistan Side Ever". Am I wrong or am I unscientific?

Posted by mnemoniny on July 26 2008, 00:20 AM GMT

I think that the emphasis on finding a 'special' or 'star' cricketer for pakistan is misplaced. Giving the 34-year-old Misbah captaincy makes a lot of sense, no candidate is better suited than this guy. I think, though, with choosing the Pakistan captain some more subtle investigation would be required into the standings Misbah has with his team-mates. So often Pakistan dressing rooms refuse to give their captain respect, and so often it proves that magnificent team's downfall. My Pakistan XI: 1. Salman Butt | 2. Sohail Tanvir (he's a proven run-scorer and i believe opens in first class cricket) | 3. Younis Khan | 4. Misbah-ul-Haq (c) | 5. Mohammad Yousuf | 6. Sarfraz Ahmed (w) | 7. Shahid Afridi | 8. Rana Naved-ul-Hasan | 9. Umar Gul | 10. Wahab Riaz | 11. Danish Kaneria. Give them time together as a unit under Misbah, with no Malik or Asif or Shoaib or (in a perfect world) political machinations of the Pakistan Cricket Board. It is probably a pipe dream the way things are going...

Posted by MaksoodChaiwalla on July 25 2008, 23:35 PM GMT

Totally agree with Rameez. All of a sudden we all find that things like 'lack of back up talent' or 'lack of new emerging stars' being associated with a country who have consistantly produced heros. Mohammed Asif was described by Bob Woolmer as the most improved young fast bowler before he was drafted in at national level. The involvement of Aquib Javed and Waqar Younis in finding young talent, the development of batsmen like Yasir Hameed, Imran Farhad, Taufeeq Umer, Salman Butt and many more budding youngsters during the time of Bob Woolmer, why has it all fizzed out? I am not too sure what's happenning to Pakistan cricket politically but has the system of grooming young talent completely evaporated? It is true Pakistan needs a better leader but more importantly they are in need of a coach who could understand each individual better, one who could as Rameez mentions, creat a winning environment on the field. A simple solution is to get back into the trait of having a local coach.

Posted by LuckyFaisal on July 25 2008, 23:16 PM GMT

Nice article Ramiz. The problem is just not with Cricket, the problem is with the whole country which is going south. From top to bottom nobody is sincere and honest with the country or the cricket team. It is a sad situation for Pakistani people and the only thing we can do is to hope and pray. There was a time few years back when Pakistani cricketers used to talk like politicians where they make promises to do this and that. Well just like politics, didn't happen.

Posted by Mo__Khan on July 25 2008, 21:34 PM GMT

What Mr. Raja needs to remember that he was nothing but an average international cricketer. With the exception of the West Indies Pakistan have the worst cricket board currently in operation. Sadly Pakistan as a cricketing nation has lost its way and it does not help when below par crickets who have now become below par commentators make negative comments. Is there an abdundance of talent in Pakistan, i am not sure and to be perfectly honest i and many others have gone past caring. If the late Bob Woolmer could not get the team to function as a unit i seriously doubt Geoff Lawson has the ability or the know how to turn things around. As for Mr. Malik the current captain he needs to be given an opportunity and ex players should rally around and assist in this process, instead of knocking him at every given opportunity. The problem with Pakistan is not its cricketers but its infra-structure and most certainly the board. Ramiz is not half the cricketer Soaib Mailk is.

Posted by sarimbaig on July 25 2008, 21:29 PM GMT

The current situation of Pakistani cricket has to be attributed to an overall apathy that seems to be prevalent both on and off the field. The administration, as well as the players seem to be disinterested and as it should be apparent by now even the general public is gradually losing interest in the game. Anyone living in Pakistan can notice that the amount of street cricket is declining. A recent announcement from Mr. Muhammad Yousaf about pulling out from the test side because of Ramzan and the board’s subsequent approval of it, is a great example of this situation. Are the other players participating in matches during Ramzan lesser Muslims? Will the board allow the other 11 players to pull out on these grounds? Has any high profile player in the past sited such reasons for pulling out of national duty? These senior players seem to be leading there personal agendas and the board is once again downright stupid. All that it is doing is losing players, I mean, where is Asim Kamal?

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