Pakistan cricket’s cauldron of intrigue stirs again… Must be a World Cup round the corner

Maybe, it is the din of the IPL that drowned the pandemonium next door. Of late, a lot has happened in Pakistan cricket.

Babar Azam returned as captain. Shaheen Shah Afridi’s stint lasted just one T20 series. There are whispers of it being a political decision with Punjab-vs-Pathan overtones. An ‘old wine in new bottle’ jumbo selection committee was put in place. Among others, it had Wahab Riaz, Abdul Razzaq and Mohammad Yousuf. The 7-men group has no chairman but surprisingly a data analyst. They have picked India’s World Cup-winning coach Gary Kirsten to join the Pakistan team, Yousuf hinted at a press conference.

The committee recently picked a long list of players for the New Zealand series at home. They said this would be the pool from which the T20 World Cup squad will be finalised. Fast bowler Mohammad Amir, once jailed in the UK over match-fixing charges, was recalled. Also returning was all-rounder Imad Wasim. He had retired in disgust, saying he was wronged. Amir and Imad were part of the Sarfaraz Ahmed-led Pakistan team that won the ICC Champions Trophy in 2017 – the last time Pakistan won an ICC event.

Sarfaraz wouldn’t last long. He got sacked. Many claim him being from Karachi was the reason. He made way for Lahore boy Babar. Amir and Imad too didn’t last long back then. They were seen as Sarfaraz’s men. The most influential selector of the committee Wahab has shared a dressing room with most of the senior players but this certainly isn’t a reunion of old mates.

YouTubers, TV pundits and former Pakistan players are taking potshots and bets on how soon Pakistan cricket will go the hockey way. Knives are being sharpened already. They predict all hell will break loose if Pakistan loses to India in the T20 World Cup in June.

In Pakistan, no radical change takes place without the Army in the background. After the wholesale changes, PCB dutifully announced a two-week physical fitness camp at an Army camp in Kakul, Abbottabad. Was it optics or an out-of-the box idea to prepare the team for the season ahead?

Modern fitness trainers and sports science experts look down upon such short-term fitness programmes. The Novak Djokovics and Virat Kohlis of the world credit lifestyle changes, daily discipline and innovative ideas for their fitness turnarounds.

Pakistan cricket social media handles have several videos of players scaling rope walls, lifting teammates like firefighters do, playing tug-of-war, running on obstacle courses, and push-up competitions. The boot camp outdoor activities look more like party games and players like corporate employees at an off-site retreat.

Babar said the camp improved the team’s bonding. PCB would share the evidence. There was a video of Amir cackling while playing pool with Babar. Cricket, pool table and attempted reconciliations aren’t new. Once Sourav Ganguly and Greg Chappell too potted coloured balls on a green baize in Zimbabwe. It didn’t work.

Political intrigue

Pakistan has wheels within wheels. It starts from the top. PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi, at the time of his appointment, was the caretaker Punjab chief minister. At present, he is the interior minister. Wahab, the selector, was Naqvi’s sports minister. One doesn’t need to be an insider to say that these are political appointments.

PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi with Babar Azam. (Screenshot)

Wahab, meanwhile, has dual responsibilities. He is also the team’s travelling senior manager. He isn’t the only one. Yousuf, when not selecting the team, will be the national side’s batting coach.

Beyond the obvious question about conflict of interest, there are practical concerns. Do Pakistan cricket’s important decision-makes have too much on their plate? Will they have the time to diffuse the potential fires that can get ignited in the highly-inflammable dressing room?

Even before the team gathered after the change in leadership, there was a PCB-generated controversy. The press release that announced Babar’s elevation had an ultra-enthusiastic quote of outgoing skipper Shaheen. “As a team player, it is my duty to back our captain, Babar Azam… I have nothing but respect for him …,” he was quoted as saying. It was a gracious thought but the only thing was it was fake. Reports say Shaheen was livid, and wanted to make a statement of his own. PCB panicked. The chairman rushed for peace talks.

Shaheen isn’t just another former captain. He has led his Pakistan Super League team to two titles, the many Pathans presently in the team have always been part of his coterie. He also is the son-in-law of one of Pakistan’s most popular ex-cricketers ever – Shahid Afridi. PCB haven’t named a vice-captain but he is likely to create a power centre.

Raking up the past

At the press conference to announce the list of probables for the Army camp, there were allegations of regionalism and toothlessness of selectors. Why are there too many from Lahore? Was the decision to make Babar captain forced on you since till very recently, many of the selectors have been blasting his captaincy on television? There were sheepish smiles by the selectors on the dais.

Razzaq knew the spotlight was on him. During the World Cup, in his avatar as a news channel cricket expert, he had said how Babar is a good batsman but his captaincy wasn’t great and he should step aside. At the media interaction, Razzaq, a selector now, said how a person’s view changes on switching seats. The explanation wasn’t compelling.

Others too might have to go through an urgent rewrite. Amir, on TV, is often asked about his ‘best friend’ Babar. Sarcasm is a Pakistan staple. He was once asked why he tweets when Virat Kohli scores a hundred but not when Babar does the same. He didn’t hum or haw, but unabashedly said that he was a Virat fan. On another show, he expressed his less-than- flattering views on Babar, the T20 batsman and captain.

Babar too carries baggage. Maybe, a lighter one. Blame it on a TV show with rapid-fire questions. Some time back, he was asked the one word that came to his mind when he heard the name Wahab. “Phupho,” he says. There was a burst of laughter on the set. Phupho means Bua, father’s sister. But pop-cultural references say Phupho is the evil aunt who loves intrigue. She is someone who loves stirring the pot.

If ever there was a recipe for disaster, PCB has been true to it, not missing any spice. This is an ensemble of men that would be the dream of any reality show casting director.

Pakistan, historically, doesn’t allow the dressing-room atmosphere to impact their performance on the field. Imran Khan-Javed Miandad, Wasim Akram-Waqar Younis… those Men in Green might not be the best of friends but were committed to the larger common cause. But this time, it looks different. Babar’s men aren’t in the same class and the mistrust is much deeper.

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