PCB probes tour failings

A two-match ban for stand-in captain Shahid Afridi, left, was another blow for Pakistan after Test and one-day whitewashes

The Pakistan Cricket Board has put in place a six-member inquiry committee to investigate the reasons for the team’s debacle during their ongoing tour of Australia.

Pakistan lost all three Test matches and all five one-day internationals against Australia and also had stand-in captain Shahid Afridi banned for two Twenty20 internationals for ball tampering during the last ODI.

“The committee will look into the various aspects of the team performance and make recommendations accordingly,” the PCB said.

The panel will be headed by the PCB’s chief operating officer Wasim Bari and also includes the director of the national cricket academy, Haroon Rashid, director of cricket operations, Zakir Khan, the board’s lawyer, Tafazzul Rizvi, former team manager Yawar Saeed and governing board member Wazir Ali Khoja.

Former captain Ramiz Raja called for massive changes in the team.

“The way I see it, you need to carry out a comprehensive surgery to set things right because the team performed very poorly in Australia,” he said.

“It is time to think long-term and on modern lines in Pakistan cricket, because in Australia we never looked like winning at any stage.”

Meanwhile, Iqbal Qasim, who resigned as chief of selectors, has rejected a request from Butt to continue until the ICC World Twenty20 in the Caribbean.

“I am thankful to Mr Butt for his kind words, but I will not change my decision,” Qasim said.