Misbah asked to pad-up for job appraisal interview

Captain’s appearance as guest on PCB Chairman’s TV show shocks critics.

KARACHI:

Pakistan cricket served another first as the board’s Chairman Najam Sethi was seen arguing about team strategy and leadership skills of captain Misbahul Haq in his TV show ‘Aapas Ki Baat’ Saturday night.

The host of the show asked Sethi and Misbah questions pertaining to the performance of the team. In the middle of the transmission Sethi donned his journalist hat and asked Misbah about his leadership skills and the tactics of the team.

Former Pakistan Cricket Board chief executive Arif Abbasi was stunned with the interim chairman’s initiative to dissect the team’s performance live with the captain.

“It was a joke and unfair to the captain as well,” he said. “It is not the work of the chairman to discuss strategies or the team’s batting order. I am still wondering what is going on with our cricket. Such matters are private and can’t be discussed publicly.”

Sethi tried to give the impression that his questions to Misbah were in the capacity of a journalist and not as the head of the cricket board.

Abbasi dismissed Sethi’s clarification saying, “That did not change the reality.”

Interview a puzzle: Ahmed

Veteran cricket journalist and commentator Qamar Ahmed found the interview puzzling.

“The chairman doesn’t even know the difference between Frank Tyson and Mike Tyson,” said Ahmed. “He doesn’t have a cricketing background and doesn’t know the nuances of the game.

“I think he needs a crash course to understand the technicalities of the game.

“He shouldn’t be asking questions of the captain in front of the camera. I have never seen such an occurrence in my journalistic career spanning over five decades.”

Meanwhile, renowned cricket journalist and commentator Mirza Iqbal Baig was also caught by surprise on Misbah’s appearance in the show.

Baig also questioned Sethi’s journalistic ethics.

“It was not ethical as the chairman can’t use his clout for personal gain,” he said. “Sethi made a bad move and I think he has shot himself in the foot by questioning Misbah’s tactics on air. The captain played flawless hook shots on his gentle-paced bouncers and seemingly convinced the chairman of his performance”.

During the show, Sethi also downplayed critics of Misbah and the national team by claiming that most of the former cricketers were unaware of the requirements of present day cricket.

On the other hand, former Test opener Shoaib Mohammad thought that Sethi’s remarks did not make sense.

“Even a layman will criticise the team with this performance,” former Test cricketer Shoaib Mohammad reacted. “The former cricketers have dedicated their lives to the game and they are the right people to criticise.”

Shoaib, who also served as a selector, added that the former players are hurt with the spineless performances of the national team regardless of their understanding of modern cricket.

“The technique remains the same whether it’s modern or old cricket.”

Published in The Express Tribune, November 18^th, 2013.

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