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Express Tribune
6 days ago
- Business
- Express Tribune
Mentors refuse to quit after tourney scrapped
Mentors appointed by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for last year's Champions Cup are refusing to step down despite their roles being declared redundant. While Shoaib Malik has resigned voluntarily, the remaining four — Misbah-ul-Haq, Saqlain Mushtaq, Sarfaraz Ahmed, and Waqar Younis — are holding out, potentially forcing the PCB to pay Rs 20 million in compensation. Details have emerged that the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had appointed five mentors for the Champions Cup in August last year. These included Misbah-ul-Haq, Saqlain Mushtaq, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Shoaib Malik, and Waqar Younis. From the beginning, their hefty monthly salary of Rs 5 million each had been a topic of debate. Recently, the PCB decided to scrap the Champions Cup due to unsatisfactory results and replace it with the Pentangular Cup. Logically, this also meant the mentors were no longer needed. Sensing the inevitable, Shoaib Malik resigned voluntarily, but the remaining four have maintained silence. Sources say some of them are deliberately waiting to be officially dismissed so they can claim compensationfour months' salary amounting to Rs 20 million as per their contracts. A few days ago, the PCB unofficially conveyed through informal channels that their services were no longer required, expecting they might resign on their own. However, since that hasn't happened, the board may be forced to explore other options. Sources further revealed that during their job interviews, these mentors had claimed they were forgoing lucrative opportunities — coaching gigs, TV shows, commentary, and league contracts — to serve the nation. That emotional pitch helped them secure record-breaking salaries. Ironically, many of them continued with their other engagements despite being appointed by the board. After only a few months of paying hefty salaries, the authorities realized the initiative wasn't yielding the expected benefits. Reportedly, some mentors have even warned the PCB that if removed, they would launch criticism campaigns on media.
Express Tribune
05-05-2025
- Sport
- Express Tribune
Champions Cup future in jeopardy
The future of the Champions Cup cricket tournament is now in jeopardy, with discussions emerging about reviving the Pentangular Cup in its place. No decision has yet been made regarding the mentors who are drawing salaries of 5 million rupees per month. Meanwhile, the regions have rejected the proposal to reduce the number of domestic cricket teams. According to details, after domestic cricket failed to deliver the desired results, the PCB recently formed a committee for reforms, which held its first meeting a few days ago. Sources revealed that due to the lack of expected benefits, there are now considerations to discontinue the Champions Cup. No decision has been taken yet about the future of the mentors earning 5 million rupees monthly; one suggestion is to assign them other tasks. Discussions were also held about reinstating the four-day, one-day, and T20 Pentangular tournaments as in the past, including both finalists of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy and departmental events, along with one PCB team. This team would include the best cricketers from across the country, and each team would have a professional coach appointed. During the meeting, representatives of the regions rejected the proposal to reduce the number of domestic teams from 18 to 9. Suggestions to categorize teams into silver and gold, merge smaller city teams, or combine regional and departmental teams also failed to convince them. They argued that the current teams were to remain in place for three years, and there's no justification for changing them after just one year. A regional official, blaming PCB's domestic cricket department's interference in selection and other matters as the root cause of issues, said they should be allowed to manage everything independently. Regarding the lack of talent from smaller cities, participants cited India's Ranji Trophy as an example, noting that only one superstar, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, emerged from Jharkhand, but that team is always part of the domestic event. A similar example was given from Australian cricket regarding Steve Waugh.
