Pakistan announce selection committee revamp an hour after Multan hammering; ex-umpire Aleem Dar among new members

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has made significant changes to its selection committee, coinciding with yet another disappointing home Test loss to England. Shortly after England secured a comfortable innings victory in Multan on Friday, the PCB revealed the inclusion of Aleem Dar, Aaqib Javed and Azhar Ali as new members. They join Asad Shafiq, analyst Hassan Cheema, as well as the team’s captain and coach, who were already part of the selection panel.

This expanded group now has seven voting members responsible for selection decisions. Additionally, there are four non-voting members: Azhar Mahmood (assistant coach), Bilal Afzal (advisor to the PCB chairman), Nadeem Khan (director of High Performance) and Usman Wahla (director of International Cricket).

The overhaul comes just days after the resignation of Mohammad Yousuf from the selection panel. No head of the committee has been appointed yet, which means 26 individuals have held this role since August 2021.

Picking team for second Test

The PCB’s announcement followed Pakistan’s defeat by an innings and 47 runs in the first Test against England, as they became the first team to lose by an innings after scoring over 550 in their first innings. It was the team’s third consecutive home Test loss and their seventh defeat in their last nine home matches. Pakistan’s poor run has placed them at the bottom of the World Test Championship (WTC) points table, with just 16 points from eight matches.

The newly appointed committee faces the immediate task of selecting the squad for the second Test in Multan, which is set to start next Tuesday.

Earlier this year, the PCB had already restructured the selection panel under its chairman Mohsin Naqvi, but changes continued after Pakistan’s early exit from the T20 World Cup in June. Selectors Wahab Riaz and Abdul Razzaq were removed from their positions at the time, and no immediate replacements were announced. Yousuf’s departure last month left Shafiq as the sole voting member alongside the captains and coaches.

The appointment of Aleem Dar as a selector has come as a surprise, as it is uncommon for umpires to take on this role. Although Dar stepped down from the ICC’s elite umpiring panel last year, he has continued officiating in domestic and international matches, recently announcing that this season would be his final one as a professional umpire.