LAHORE: Naveed Akram Cheema formally rejoined Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) as manager of the national team here on Friday.

Naveed, who did an admirable job as manager during the tenures of Ijaz Butt and Zaka Ashraf for almost two years, relinquished it after he was promoted to the post of chief secretary Punjab.

However, he has once again been entrusted with the manager’s post following after his retirement from the government post on Dec 31, 2014. It may be mentioned here that the PCB chief Shaharyar M Khan, after holding lengthy discussions with the erstwhile national team manager Moin Khan, persuaded him to give up the post and concentrate solely on the high-profile position as chief selector.

Talking to Dawn, Naveed said that he met PCB chairman Shaharyar and other officials after giving his joining report to the PCB.

When reminded that a few players had complained in the past about his strict attitude as manager, Naveed said he had always tried to act as a father figure to the team members and always looked to sort out their problems.

Naveed, who first took over as manager after the infamous spot-fixing case in 2010 tour of England, said the 2015 World Cup is a big challenge for him in this second tenure with the PCB. “But everyone can earn positive results with sincere efforts and I will be doing my best to ensure success for our team,” he said.

Published in Dawn, January 3rd, 2015

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