The Pakistan Cricket Board must reconsider its blanket national ban on its players participating in the non-sanctioned Indian Cricket League, new PCB director general Javed Miandad said Friday. “I feel that there is a public pressure on us because Pakistani players (competing in ICL) are performing well,” former national captain Miandad said. “Look at Sri Lanka they have already lifted the (domestic) ban on their players who are playing in the ICL. “Gradually the pressure is rising because ultimately it's the cricketers who are suffering.” Currently players taking part in the ICL are banned from playing for Pakistan, because the Twenty20 league runs in competition to the officially sanctioned Indian Premier League. Other nations have done the same, as the ICL is not recognized by the International Cricket Council. Ex-skipper Inzamamul Haq leads the Lahore Badshahs team in the ICL, which is made up of Pakistani players and won the most recent competition. Batsmen Imran Nazir, Imran Farhat, Mohammad Yousuf, all-rounders Rana Naved and Abdul Razzaq and pacemen Shabbir Ahmed and Mohammad Sami are among the 19 Pakistani players, who are competing in the ICL. Miandad – scorer of a national record 8,832 runs in 124 Tests – said Pakistan and India feel the worst effect from the ICL ban. “I am a firm believer that whosoever performs well, should be given a proper chance at the highest level of cricket (test matches and one-day internationals),” he said. “But at the moment many talented cricketers are under suspension in both India and Pakistan despite performing brilliantly in the ICL.” The new chairman of the PCB Ejaz Butt said last month that the ICC has already been warned by its lawyers of problems ahead if it is sued by the ICL. Jaffar, Shoaib Mohammad in PCB selection panel The Pakistan Cricket Board on Friday appointed former Test fast bowler Salim Jaffar and opening batsman Shoaib Mohammad to the national selection committee. Jaffar was the chief selector in the interim selection committee while Mohammad – son of former test captain Mushtaq Mohammad – was a member. Former Test leg-spinner Abdul Qadir was named the new chief selector on Thursday. “They have been appointed on a full-time, paid selection committee and will be responsible for selecting the national cricket team and Pakistan ‘A' team,” the PCB said in a statement. Jaffar and Shoaib Mohammad are the latest former Test players to join Pakistan's new cricketing setup since Ejaz Butt took over last month from Nasim Ashraf as PCB chairman. Others include Salim Altaf (chief operating officer), Javed Miandad (director general), Aamir Sohail (director of the national cricket academy), Wasim Bari (director of human resources) and Qadir (chief selector).
