Irfan Husain, writing in the Dawn, examines some of the problems plaguing the game in Pakistan. The incompetence of the PCB, the concerns associated with coaching, be it local or foreign, the constant feuds between players and the board and the inconsistency of the team are some of the issues he explores.

To begin with, PCB, the cricket board charged with organising the sport, is largely composed of government nominees whose basic interest is to enjoy the perks as long as they can. Few of them have the expertise and the dedication required to lift standards and provide the infrastructure needed for the development of the sport at the grassroots.

Qamar Ahmed, writing in the same newspaper, says that the PCB's initial decision to take legal action against the ICC for moving the World Cup out of Pakistan was an exercise in futility. He adds that the board should consider itself lucky to have sorted out the dispute in an out-of-court settlement. The important thing now, he writes, is to see how the PCB manages the financial returns - which includes its host fees as well as compensation - it is expected to gain after its agreement with the ICC.

One hopes that all that big purse that the PCB is in possession is spent on sensible and cricketing projects from which at least we are able to save our face from people who now believe that we are only a bunch of nincompoops and nothing else.

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