KARACHI, May 5: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Friday confirmed the hiring of former South African Test player Jonty Rhodes as fielding coach for two weeks.

As usual PCB decided not to divulge the terms and conditions as well as the payments to be made to Rhodes.

Rhodes’ appointment for two weeks came as no surprise considering PCB’s preference for foreign experts and huge sums of money spent on them.

There are already half-a-dozen foreign coaches in PCB’s payroll and Rhodes is another addition to that bulging list.

But what is more mind-boggling is the duration of Rhodes contract.

What on earth Rhodes would impart in a two-week stint to improve fielding aspect of the game to the players who are more experienced and senior than South African.

A possible explanation could be that PCB regards Rhodes possesses some kind of magic wand that would eventually turn an ordinary fielder into an outstanding one.

Several of Pakistan’s own legends have been critical of appointing a fielding coach. None have been more vocal than Imran Khan, Pakistan’s greatest cricketer, and country’s best-known batsman Javed Miandad.

Both termed the appointment of a fielding coach for two weeks a ‘joke’.

PCB in the past engaged some batting legends for two weeks spending millions of rupees. Geoffrey Boycott, Greg Chappell, Barry Richards and Clive Lloyd all came for a fortnight’s coaching, enjoyed their stay, praised the hospitality and immense cricketing talent available in the country before returning home.

The benefit accrued from these visits have brought no benefit to Pakistan cricket except an exercise in futility and wastage of money.

Will Inzamamul Haq, Mohammad Yousuf, Shoaib Akhtar and Rana Navedul Hasan be able to improve their outcricket in seven or 15 days? It is very unlikely.

A better option for PCB would have been to engage a fielding coach for a longer period, especially for academies and not for players nearing end of their careers.

Unfortunately like other institutions PCB has not learnt from past experience of hiring batting and bowling coaches which proved nothing but disasters at a cost of millions of rupees that went down the drain with no benefit at all.

Some of the batting legends hired by PCB at astronomical fees include Geoffrey Boycott, Barry Richards, Greg Chappel and Clive Lloyds.

Unfortunately these great cricketers who visited Pakistan, received fat fees, enjoyed great hospitality and returned home smiling with the declaration that Pakistan possesses abundant talent.

One of them even praised Imran Nazir and touted him as the batsman of the future. What happened to poor Imran Nazir after that is history. He is not even in Pakistan ‘A’ team.