PCB bring back Haroon Rasheed in powerful position a year after sacking him

Karachi: Exactly a year after forcing him to step down as chief selector, the Pakistan Cricket Board has brought back former Test batsman, Haroon Rasheed in a more powerful position in the PCB.

The PCB has announced the appointment of Haroon as director cricket operations and will be reporting directly to the chief operating officer, Subhan Ahmad.

The board said in a statement that Haroon has been picked for the post after the PCB interviewed a total of three candidates including former Test spinner, Iqbal Qasim and Haroon met all the required credentials for the job.

Ironically soon after Pakistan were eliminated early in the World T20 last April in India, a fact-finding committee formed by the PCB recommended the sacking of the entire selection committee which was headed by Rasheed.

Even otherwise, Haroon, who has also remained chief coach and manager of the Pakistan senior and junior teams besides serving as director game development in the board, has been either removed or forced to step down in different capacities.

“It is clear that the decision to bring back Haroon has the full backing of Najam Sethi who is tipped to take over as chairman of the board from Shaharyar Khan in a few week’s time,” a reliable source in the board told PTI.

He said the only reason Haroon’s appointment as director cricket operations was delayed since last year was due to the resistance put up by Shaharyar who didn’t want him back in any position.

But soon after the PCB confirmed Haroon’s appointment this week, Shaharyar also changed his tune and insisted Haroon’s poor show as chief selector didn’t have any bearing to his new assignment.

“That was a different job and we went for changes after the World Cup based on recommendations of the fact-finding committee but this job is different and Haroon has the experience and credentials to do it successfully,” Shaharyar said.

It is no secret that with Shaharyar on his way out after completing three years in the board, Sethi, who heads the executive committee, is now increasingly calling the shots on cricket affairs.