Pakistan met with a disaster when they were comprehensively beaten on their own soil in both Tests by Bangladesh for the first time in history. With that they continued their long spree of defeats that started under Babar Azam the so-called king, a misnomer that has become a joke in social media. Zaka Ashraf hastily appointed raw Shan Masood and Shaheen Shah Afridi as captains, replacing the champion of continuous defeats. Shan could prove captain material but not by such a sudden push in the arena. Whatever happened was a foregone conclusion by all those who understand the nitty-gritty of cricket with an unbiased mind. It was no rocket science to read the tide after observing the developments in PCB.

The much talked about surgery was called off by Mr. Mohsin Naqvi which gave the impression that for whatever reasons he bowed down to “player power” and shied away from taking strong decisions.

Mr. Mohsin Naqvi, basically a media tycoon, proved his mettle as a strong administrator in the capacity of caretaker Chief Minister Punjab and performed the tasks assigned to him very well. With the support of powerful circles he was confident and astute. Similarly, he is doing well as the Interior Minister. Cricket, however, is a different ball game and does not seem to be his cup of tea. He says he is resolute to put the PCB house in order but so far has not been able to achieve anything.

It was very clear that Babar, Shaheen and Rizwan, along with Iftikhar, Shadab and Imad, were involved in group politics and it was the talk of the town that at least the big three will be shown the door. However Babar, Shaheen and Rizwan remained in the side.

The most shocking appointment came when Waqar Younus, who had failed umpteen times, was given a major role in PCB. Waqar is a tried and tested debacle for cricket in Pakistan, who literally came as a “parchi” because no one on earth could consider it to be on merit.

He was the coach in 2015 world cup and single-handedly destroyed every chance of Pakistan moving up in that contest. God knows who recommended his name for a major role in the PCB. It sounded the death knell of already gasping cricket in Pakistan.

As I have written in these pages before, the systematic destruction of cricket started strangely by a cricketer-turned-Prime Minister when he banned departmental teams and appointed London-based chiefs, to be replaced by Ramiz Raja, a flatterer who took measures according to his strong likes and dislikes. Ramiz also came up with senseless projects like drop-in pitches from Australia, costing a fortune. Rameez was replaced subsequently by Najam Sethi and Zaka Ashraf who played musical chairs for a long time, as nominees of two political parties. Hasty decisions were taken by both without any long-term vision.

Zaka Ashraf was knocked out on technical grounds of fake degree. Mohsin Naqvi came as a surprise choice again without any previous background or in-depth analytical knowledge of cricket.

It was expected that he would be a strong no-nonsense administrator with an unbiased advisor like Noor Khan having Arif Abbasi. But lo and behold: he chose or was asked to select a very controversial character Waqar Younus.

One is appalled by statements of Azhar Mahmood and Shan Masood that they could not read the pitch or that the pitch changed its character. Such statements could have been digested if they were given by the visiting captain and assistant coach but definitely by the captain and the assistant coach of the home team. It was a ridiculous statement.

The first Test wicket was prepared for fast bowlers and it was argued that Abrar and Osama had no place on a fast track. The track, however, supported spin bowlers from the outset. Shakib and Mehidy ran through fragile Pakistan batting. Saim Ayub, the only useful part time spinner in the team, was given only seven overs for one wicket in spite of watching Pakistan crumble under turning deliveries of Shakib and Mehidy in both innings. In the second Test, Pakistan meticulously prepared a fast track again and then inducted Abrar knowing fully well that he will fail and those chanting for Abrar’s inclusion as a mystery spinner will be embarrassed; a dirty move.

One thing is absolutely clear. Making Rizwan the captain of any format will be a greater disaster than even Babar. That will be the last straw on the camel’s back.

With all my knowledge and background of cricket I fully agree with Abdul Razzak, Javed Mianad, Sikandar Bakht and other cricketers that at this critical juncture the only way forward is appointing Sarfaraz Ahmed as the captain. He is a natural leader and can once again gel the new team. He is street smart with a very deep understanding of how to counter the moves of the rival captain. He is one of the few who excel in reading the pitch. I can assure that given autonomy he will deliver. Once he succeeds in Tests, he can be even considered for white-ball cricket. A relatively junior player should be put as his deputy to be trained by him. All those who say that Sarfaraz’s cricket is over should remember that he is the previous year’s winning captain of Quaid-e-Azam Trophy.

(The writer is a former first class cricketer, former Inspector General of Police and former Convenor, PCB Adhoc Committee.)