Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Ad-hoc committee could replace governing board

The Pakistan sports minister said a new PCB chairman could be named after the Champions Trophy.

The Pakistan government is set to install an ad-hoc committee to run national cricket affairs following the resignation of Pakistan board chairman Nasim Ashraf.

Najmuddin Khan, Pakistan's sports minister, told reporters that an ad-hoc committee will be formed soon and is likely to be headed by a former Test cricketer.

Najmuddin said since Pakistan are to host the Champions Trophy in less than a month's time, it cannot afford too many changes till then and a new chairman could be named at a later stage.

He also hinted at bringing reforms in the PCB constitution and said that it is likely the powers to appoint the board chairman could now go to the prime minister. Till now, the president has had the authority to appoint the PCB chairman. Ashraf was picked to head the board by former president Pervez Musharraf in 2006.

Ashraf has informed the sports ministry that he was willing to carry on for the next few weeks in a bid to ensure the Champions Trophy, scheduled for September 12 to 28, is held smoothly. But Najmuddin indicated that changes could be made in the PCB set-up before the start of the tournament that has been under a cloud because of security concerns.

Najmuddin also said that the government is planning to launch a probe into the PCB affairs in the coming weeks.

Meanwhile, press secretary to the prime minister, Zahid Bashir, said the news about suspension of the constitution of the PCB was "baseless".