Bilal Ahmed 
(C)The International News,pcb chairman defends selection committees decision on fakhar zamans exclusion
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi has spoken on the decision to leave out the opening batsman Fakhar Zaman from the Pakistan national teams for the tours of Australia and Zimbabwe. While talking to media in Karachi, Naqvi once again stressed upon his policy of non-interference in the affairs which concerns the selection of players as such matters are strictly a domain of the selection committee. The statement has emerged at a time when there is increasing speculation when Zaman did not make it to the central contract list for 2024-25 and the touring squads.
Fatness worries and social media scandal
Zaman had been dropped from the PCB chief’s squad during a press conference in Lahore owing to fitness issues. Naqvi, who recently announced Mohammad Rizwan as the white ball captain, mentioned that Zaman faced two significant issues: concerning measurable performance indicators which include unsatisfactory fitness test results and a show-cause notice to be tendered. These had cost him a place in the central contracts list for the upcoming international season.
It got worse when Zaman came out in the public to openly condemn the move that saw former captain Babar Azam being dropped in the Test series against England. While posting on X, the left-handed opener urged the management not to demoralize key players by sidelining the premier batsman of Pakistan.
Which autonomy does the Selection Committee have?
As many people could have expected that Naqvi had some say in the choice of the players or their omission they were thrown back in their seats by the explanation that Naqvi had to offer to the media. It is quite surprising that PCB chairman took this stand on behalf of the board which is very much interested to provide clarifications on selection parameters. The following clarification is made with an intention to dissuade people from arriving at conclusions as to possible external interferences with the team selection problems.
