Former Pakistan skipper Wasim Akram believes that cricket in his homeland required a change of guard and also welcomed the appointment of Zaka Ashraf as the board chief.
"Ijaz Butt had lost the confidence of the cricket fraternity and to appoint Zaka Ashraf is a good move. We must welcome change and Ashraf must be supported well," Akram wrote in his column for a website.
"I have not met Ashraf but I believe he is very good organiser. The bank of which he is the president is doing very well. He should run Pakistan cricket as if he is running his office. You don't have to be a cricketer to run the PCB."
Akram's suggestion is that Ashraf must make a cricket committee.
"But Ashraf must definitely make a cricket committee. That should be high on his agenda. It should consist of three or four ex-cricketers, who will make honest and unbiased opinion and are not 'yes men'.
"The decision of the cricket committee must be respected and Ashraf must not poke his nose in everything. Ashraf's biggest challenge will be to put the house in order and I can only wish him well."
On the cricketing front, he said that senior cricketer Shoaib Malik justified his selection in the national team during the series versus Sri Lanka.
"A Test series always provides the platform for players to prove their worth. While someone like Umar Akmal will ponder about his future and the wasted opportunities, men like Shoaib Malik must now try and justify the faith the selectors have put on him once more."
Akram feels that Malik is a useful cricketer and should stay away from politics.
"Shoaib has seen a lot of ups and downs in his career. He has been a former skipper and understands the value of team spirit. I think Shoaib is a very useful cricketer as long as he knows that he needs to help out the youngsters and keep a safe distance form politicking." he opined.
 |
                                                                                           |
 |