THE word ‘takeoff’ is quite a common usage in our context. Every now and then we are told that the country is ready for takeoff, the implication obviously being that we are all set for a vertical movement in the journey of our nationhood.
Though the PCB has not used the word thus far, all the noises having been made in recent days carry the same tone; Pakistan cricket is ready for takeoff. Incidentally, neither the government nor the PCB seems to be clear on the destination. A takeoff alright, but takeoff to where? As far as cricket is concerned, it may well be a takeoff to the Bermuda Triangle. It sucks (pun not quite intended).
One major piece of the jigsaw puzzle that is Pakistan cricket has fallen in place with the appointment of John Michael Arthur (aka Mickey), the South African-turned-Australian who is the latest messiah who will guide us on the path forward instead of leading us up the garden path … a Hercules who will clean up the Augean Stables of the national cricket scene.
From 1999 to date — dotted with the names of Richard Pybus, Bob Woolmer, Geoff Lawson and Dav Whatmore — Mickey is the fifth foreigner to don the mantle. Will he take us where the others couldn’t? You can bet your life on it … only if you are fed up with mortal existence.
Lest it be misunderstood, the problem lies not with Mickey, or, for that matter, with any of his four predecessors. Any individual in any field of life has the right to aspire to get hold of much better pay packages whether or not they deserve to get that elevation. Likewise, there is no bar on trying to kick-start one’s career at any stage, and Mickey cannot be faulted on those two critical points.
The fault, in all such cases lies with those who make the decision — the PCB in this case — and those who in one way or the other influence the process of decision-making — Ramiz Raja and Wasim Akram in this case. As soon as the decision was announced, the latter washed his hands off, saying nobody should expect miracles in a hurry, and that Mickey should be given a couple of years to start producing results. How convenient, really.
Will Mickey Arthur take us where his predecessors couldn’t? One can bet one’s life on it … only if one is fed up with mortal existence
It reeks of the same rhetoric that we have all been hearing for the last 15 years, if not more, about the country’s self-sufficiency in terms of its energy requirements. All deadlines to meet that target are set for three years ahead only for the deadlines to be set afresh. It’s all about buying time and an effort to release the immediate pressure that is accumulated due to serious and sustained inefficiency. In days of intense loadshedding, we have heard our leaders talk of times when the country would be among the exporters of energy.
Everything being said by the PCB and its two luminary advisors is in the same league. Even those making the utterances know where their heart is. As a nation we love to make new beginnings every now and then probably because inherent in every new beginning is the time relief. Nobody can ask about the destination. Nobody can question the direction. Nobody is allowed to be skeptical. A new beginning in itself is the master argument in our context.
Ironically, we can pick up a most relevant example from the life and times of the sitting PCB supremo, Nawabzada Shaharyar Mohammad Khan. In a panel interview with Dawn during his first tenure at the helm more than a decade ago, the Nawabzada had just one answer to parry all questions with; just wait and watch.
That remained his constant refrain all through the interview that lasted a couple of hours; ‘just wait and watch’. Almost a dozen years down the line, the panelists — and indeed the readers — are still waiting and watching for all that to happen without any sign of that even beginning to happen anytime soon. The Nawabzada is in his second tenure and he is promising the moon all over again. And still there is no chance of anything happening anytime soon.
Had it not been for the dismal performance in the World Cup, he would have continued doing what he was so happy doing. He has just changed tracks, but for all practical purposes he is still doing what he is so happy doing. It is all reactive rather than proactive. And it is all rhetoric rather than action. And it is all a façade rather than substance.
Just for starters, he has not shared any specifics of what made the PCB go for Mickey. What, for instance, is the job description of the coach for he has said he would like to have a say in selection affairs. Is the PCB willing to go for it? Is the chief selector on board? Is there some accountability clause built into the contract? There are no details; just words, more words and even more words about a new beginning. And that tells its own tale.
Come to think of it, if the PCB is willing to wait a few years for the bottom line to show something positive, it should have been the Under-19 string to spend time, energy and money on. Pick them young, make them learn the virtues of fitness and discipline, counsel them on mental toughness, give them exposure and confidence and you can have a nucleus of a strong, competitive unit in three to four years that will be good enough to last a decade. And if the approach remains consistent, so will be the results and the supply chain. The current lot, meanwhile, can continue even without a coach for it can only do what it has been doing for years; playing inconsistent cricket.
And, finally, do you think it is some rocket science that the PCB is unable to make head or tail of? If you do, simply mark yourself as a simpleton of the unenviable order. Of course, everyone in the PCB understands that, and that includes the Nawabzada. But nobody wants to do that. Reason? In a position of any authority, we tend to be desperate about the ‘now’ and the ‘here’. Tomorrow can always wait for it will be someone else at the helm. It’s a national malady.
No wonder, then, that the promised takeoff never takes place and every few years we find ourselves making a new beginning while promising a takeoff in the near future. A takeoff to Bermuda Triangle. Don’t forget, it sucks (yes, pun now intended).
Published in Dawn, Sunday Magazine May 22nd, 2016
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