LAHORE: Pakistan Cricket Board chief operating officer Sumair Ahmad has blamed mismanagement from the International Cricket Council as the reason for the absence of a representative from hosts Pakistan during the final ceremony of the Champions Trophy.

Sumair was nominated by PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi as the board’s representative for the final in Dubai on March 9 but he was not called up to the stage to distribute prizes after India won the title with victory over New Zealand.

“I was at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium as Mr. Naqvi was unable to attend,” Sumair told a news conference after the announcement of the youth talent hunt programme at school and college levels on Saturday.

“We had asked for an explanation from the ICC but the response received wasn’t satisfactory so we’ve sent another letter seeking explanation.

“It was a result of mismanagement on part of the ICC and everyone knows who’s involved in it. We did not take the matter in a positive way.”

During the final ceremony, Board of Control for Cricket in India president Roger Binny presented the white jackets to India players and the medals to match officials, while ICC chairman Jay Shah handed the trophy to skipper Rohit Sharma and gave the medals to the winners.

BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia and New Zealand Cricket’s CEO Roger Twose were also present on stage but the host representation was absent.

In other Champions Trophy-related issues Sumair blamed the contractor for one of the leaking roofs of the newly-renovated Gaddafi Stadium after it rained heavily during the match between Australia and Afghanistan in Lahore. “We have claimed damages and the fault has been removed by the same contractor,” he said.

Sumair informed that the talent hunt programme will allow the PCB to pick around 10,000 players from educational institutions with the best players among them being provided coaching by the board. The PCB will also hold a tournament for them, he said.

While cricket events are held by educational boards of all districts and then at the Higher Education Commission level, Sumair said the move will allow for “an increase in cricket activities”.

He did not reply when asked if it would’ve been better to include the Pakistan Education Board’s team in the PCB’s Under-15 and Under-17 Championships and the Higher Education Commission team in Under-19 event.

Sumair, however, defended the move of holding the talent hunt programme at school and college level despite the PCB already having Under-13 and Under-16 talent hunt programmes.

“The purpose to hold cricket at the school and college level is just to introduce the game there,” he said.

Published in Dawn, March 23rd, 2025