PCB to focus on development of high-performance programs in their five-year strategic plan

The Pakistan Cricket Board on Monday (June 15) released a five-year strategic plan, stating their desire to become "one of the top-performing and most credible cricket boards in the world."



Titled ‘Five-year Plan to Inspire and Unify Our nation’ and approved by the Board of Governors, the document lists the board's strategic and corporate objectives, while also setting a "straightforward course of action" for the progress of the country's men’s, women’s and age-group teams with a clear pathway and structure for grass-root development. The PCB have also put in place a "tracking system" that will allow for constant monitoring of progress, to make sure the strategies are implemented correctly.



The strategy, with accountability, transparency, ethics and professionalism as its core principles, has been made with key focus on the stakeholders of the game as well as the fans. There are six key features involved in the strategy, including the desire to "inspire generations through our women's game."



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As made clear by Urooj Mumtaz Khan, Pakistan's chief national selector, the PCB's focus going forward will be to produce high-performing athletes with a merit-based reward system. The recently announced central contracts only underlined that criteria, with the high-performing trio of Bismah Maroof, Javeria Khan and Diana Baig all receiving promotions.



One of the salient features of the document is the board's commitment to the creating of a high-performance environment with an eye on producing "world class international teams". Their plan also involves developing a strong grassroots and pathway system that will allow for the seamless transition of young players through to the top rung of competition.



Wasim Khan, PCB Chief Executive, said the plan was in development since 2019 and delivery against key priorities for the 2019-2023 plan began last year itself. “It was highly important that we developed a clear, exciting and achievable road map that provided  clarity on our direction of travel, not only for all PCB staff but also the fans and its stakeholders.”



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“Strategic plans on paper achieve little unless individuals buy into the vision, take ownership of the strategy and are held accountable for delivering. Our robust monitoring system will track progress in a timely way so as to ensure we remain focused on what we want to achieve.”



The document lists various strategies that are in place to strengthen the women's game in the country. There are plans to develop a National High-Performance Center for women to ensure merit-based selection and enable players to receive quality training and support.



The document also lists other strategies like including women in reformed grassroot programs and integrating women’s cricket into the six cricket associations, starting talent hunt and social advocacy programs to build awareness and encourage women, investing in development of female coaches and officials, marketing and increasing the brand value of women cricketers to help them earn more and become role models.