Aleem Dar, the Pakistani Test umpire who recently retired, has been appointed to the Pakistan Cricket Board’s newly revamped selection committee, shortly after the national team endured a crushing innings and 47-run defeat to England in Multan.
Despite posting over 500 runs in their first innings, Pakistan’s loss marked the first instance of a Test-playing nation being defeated after such a score. This defeat added to Pakistan’s poor run at home, which also included a series loss to Bangladesh.
Alongside Dar, former Test cricketers Aaqib Javed and Azhar Ali, as well as analyst Hassan Cheema, who has worked as a sports broadcaster and Pakistan Super League (PSL) franchise manager, were named to the committee. Dar is the first umpire to be given such a role by the Board.
Asad Shafiq, a former Test batter, was already part of the committee following the resignation of Muhammad Yousuf. The PCB announced that all members would have voting rights, though it remained unclear whether head coaches Gary Kirsten and Jason Gillespie would retain their voting status on the panel.
Shan Masood on England’s win in Multan
Pakistan skipper Shan Masood also expressed his disappointed after the loss and talked about the performance as well. “Harsh reality is that England found a way after being under sun for two days and being 556 runs behind and we did not. They picked 10 wickets to give themselves a chance to bat and bat big.” he said.
“When they came back with the ball they had a plan and they had a window of opportunity with the new ball and the cracks [on the pitch] open. The harsh reality is that no matter what the pitch is, the quality sides will find a way and learning for us is to find a way when we play Test cricket.” he added.
First Published: Oct 11 2024 | 4:38 PM IST
