December 14, 2007	Friday	Zilhaj 3, 1428

LAHORE, Dec 13: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Dr Nasim Ashraf has demanded an explanation from the concerned officials for the national under-19 team’s poor performance against the lowly-rated Bangladesh in the recent home series.

Dawn has learned through reliable sources that Pakistan’s defeat against Bangladesh had left the senior board officials in a state of shock and a number of questions regarding players’ performances were being raised.

After taking a 2-0 lead in the five-match one-day series, Pakistan lost the three remaining matches to lose the series 3-2. Earlier, Bangladesh also pulled off a draw in the four-day game.

Sources further added that Director, National Cricket Academy (NCA) Mudassar Nazar, who also happens to be the director of game development, will be preparing a report regarding the matter as he is much involved in the preparation of junior-level teams.

It is being said that the NCA officials, in their preliminary discussion with coach Mansoor Rana, have pointed a finger towards poor umpiring from the Pakistani umpires for the team’s defeat.

“Firstly, the umpires were new and inexperienced for holding international matches. Secondly, it proved that Bangladesh has a better infrastructure as compared to Pakistan and lastly, our team played without any game plan,” said the NCA officials requesting anonymity.

According to the sources, the team management even contacted general-manager of umpires Khizer Hayat during the series, asking him to change the umpires. But Khizer refused to budge while backing the umpires for their competence and fluency in English.

An official of the U-19 team also expressed his reservations over the lacklustre approach of coach Mansoor Rana in the BD series. They argued that while the same Pakistan juniors squad beat England in England and Australia in Pakistan this year, Mansoor did not put in enough efforts to motivate them for the Bangladesh contest.

To save their skin, the higher-ups are now trying to put the blame for Pakistan’s loss on U-19 captain Immad Wasim, whose individual performance was excellent in all the three series — England, Australia and Bangladesh.