Mohsin Naqvi makes sensational revelation to improve Pakistan cricket; PCB set to become the 1st board

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi has announced that the board will use artificial intelligence (AI) to pick squads for the Champions Cup.

Mohsin Naqvi highlighted the lack of depth in Pakistan’s cricket setup, adding that there are no suitable replacements for underperforming players.

Pakistan cricket is facing a difficult period following their first-ever Test loss against Bangladesh.

The PCB and Chairman Mohsin Naqvi are facing criticism from fans and former cricketers for not addressing the issues that led to the national team’s poor performance in the T20 World Cup 2024.

We Don't Have Any Solid Data - Mohsin Naqvi

Speaking to the press on Monday, August 26, Mohsin Naqvi highlighted that the selection committee is struggling due to a lack of a strong player pool.

Naqvi acknowledged that the PCB is working to build a robust player pool through the upcoming Champions Cup.

"The problem is the selection committee has no pool to turn to from which to select players. I spoke of surgery because we need to fix our problems. But when we look at how to resolve them, we don't have any solid data or player pool which we can draw from.

The whole system was a mess. The Champions Cup will produce great talent, and we'll have records for the games that happen. For surgery, you need all the tools to perform it," Naqvi said.

The newly announced 50-over Champions Cup is set to take place from September 12-29. Naqvi has named Pakistan cricket stalwarts Waqar Younis, Saqlain Mushtaq, Misbah-ul-Haq, Shoaib Malik, and Sarfaraz Ahmed as mentors for the five teams in the domestic tournament.

The Selection Committee Will Do - Mohsin Naqvi

Naqvi said that the board will use AI in selecting 150 players for the Champions Cup. He added that this tournament will strengthen the domestic scene, provide a solid pool of players, and ensure transparent records for future selections.

"We had a lot of players for which we didn't have records. This Cup will make domestic cricket strong, we'll have a pool of 150 players, and then the surgery we need to be done, the selection committee will do.

Of these 150 players that have been selected, 80% of it has been done by AI (Artificial intelligence), and 20% using humans. Nobody can challenge that. We gave about 20% weightage to our selection committee.

If we replace a player with a worse one, you'll be the first to complain. We'll have records and we'll all be able to see transparently who deserves a place in the team."

Naqvi defended the selection committee's decision on not to include a frontline spinner in the Rawalpindi Test.

He stated that the decision was made by the captain and team management, not the selectors. Naqvi emphasized that the selection committee had provided 17 players for the series.

The second and final Test between Pakistan and Bangladesh is scheduled to take place in Rawalpindi from August 30 to September 3.

Pakistan needs to secure victory in the upcoming match to avoid a series loss. Shan Masood’s tenure as Test captain has started with four consecutive losses.

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