PCB chairman announces new seven-member selection committee

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The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has introduced a new seven-member selection committee for the Pakistan men's national team following the dissolution of the previous committee on Sunday.

Wahab Riaz, who previously served as the chief selector, remains a member of the new committee. However, unlike before, there won't be a designated chief; instead, decisions will be made through majority voting.

The new selection committee comprises former cricketers Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Yousuf, Abdul Razzaq, and Asad Shafiq. The remaining three members will consist of the head coach, captain, and data analyst of the Pakistan cricket team, whose names have yet to be disclosed.

“We have reorganised this selection committee, this [selection committee] will consist of seven members, but what is different this time is there will be no chairman selection committee, each member would have the same power as the other one,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi told media in Lahore.

“The decision would be [decided] on the majority, they should debate, and talk amongst themselves so a better conclusion can be reached. The previous structure of the committee was different, but this one, I assure you every member was chosen after considering multiple factors,” he added.

The chairman further stated that there would be two to three coordinators, though they would not possess any voting authority.

"This committee will decide every single decision from now on. They are our key players in the management who will make decisions and I am sure that they will give good results," Naqvi said.

“The chairman should have no role in the selection process, we are the management and our job is to manage the team. I am hopeful that these new members will give you positive results," he added.

Naqvi also announced that the appointment of the head coach and coaching panel will be made in four to five days.

Furthermore, the decision regarding Shaheen Afridi's continuation as T20I captain will be determined by the selection committee following the conclusion of the national camp in Kakul on April 8.

“The matter of captaincy is being deliberated upon. I believe that the captain is the selection committee’s prerogative. They are working on it and I am sure they will finalise their decision after the camp is completed. But once the captain is finalised – whether it is Shaheen Shah Afridi or someone else – we will stick by him for a long time. No matter what the results are on the field, the selection committee will be held accountable. If the captain does not have a say in the team, you cannot hold him accountable as he leads the team. Same with the head coach, because he has to run the dressing room,” Naqvi said.

The previous selection committee, now dissolved, was headed by former Pakistani pacer Wahab Riaz. Other members included Tauseef Ahmed, Wajahatullah Wasti, and Wasim Haider, with Kamran Akmal and Rao Iftikhar serving as consultant members and Hasan Muzaffar Cheema as the manager analyst.