LAHORE - So the PCB now has a vision, or so it says; previously it was blamed for a singular lack of it. Anyway, it says it has at long last hammered out a plan to shape things and events in a manner to make a difference by the year 2005, as is evident from the title 'Vision 2005'.

One has not read the whole plan in much detail, for before now it was a closely guarded secret, and amongst the outsiders only Pakistan's Chief Executive was privy to the details. But on Monday night its salient features were unveiled on the official electronic media by the best face that the PCB could rustle up, who else but Rameez Raja.

This medium term plan (the phrase long-term is really a misnomer for a three-year period) foresees massive activity in every sphere: upgrading of existing infrastructure and building new grounds and stadia across the country, radical overhaul of domestic cricket, establishment of a host of academies, some of which have already become functional, reintroducing cricket at school and college level, reinventing the club structure and improvement of human resource for international level umpires and other areas etc.

These are the main features, and taken at face value most of the ideas look bright and ambitious, specially the one concerning the shift of focus in domestic cricket. Apparently, the thinking in the Board, as enunciated by Raja, is that because of economic constraints, the banks and other departments, which had sustained cricket for the last quarter of a century, were either no longer willing or able to continue to show the same kind of commitment and input. That, apart from the fact that in all front-line cricketing nations cricket was played on regional basis, probably necessitated changing of the course.

So the accent in domestic cricket would be on regions, with the super league upping the ante with the four provinces contesting for honours. To cap it, it would be an entirely professional set-up, with each province getting to field around five players of international reckoning, with fees per match for each individual player ranging from $2,000 to $3,000. That is loads of money compared to the Rs 4,000 stipend a month that most banks and departments are putting on offer these days for employment on temporary basis.

With the total sponsored outlay being close to $300,000 in the forthcoming 2001 season, the provinces would also be allowed to hire overseas professionals.

This elite set-up, with a nucleus of top 100 players in the country involved, the Board believes, would enhance the competitive value of first-class cricket, resulting in much-larger crowd involvement, making it worthy of live telecasts which would in turn lure sponsors to plough cash into it.

Again there is a bit of a snag right at the outset, as the PCB is finding it difficult to schedule the super league: both the four-day and the one-day components, which would each require four and two weeks respectively. The problem: till the first week of April, 2002 the international schedule is so tight that finding separate four and two week slots is proving difficult. And without top rated stars playing the contest, as they should, it would be nothing more than a damp squib.

While talking to this scribe, Raja for his part sounded positive that the slots would be arranged, and the other details would also be worked out.

Regardless of how grand and magnificent the 'Vision' looks on paper, or should one say in a 'power-point presentation' and computer-generated spreadsheets, as the latest fads go, the cynical among us would always have doubts about the most vital, implementation end. In this country, events have a curious way of unfolding in a most unpredictable manner, and the continuity factor is so crucial because opinions of one set of Board officials following the other have sometimes been seen to be poles apart.

And since 1988, while no government here has lasted its term of five years, our cricket board has done much worse, with the last Chairman/President to have served out his full stint being Lt Gen (Rtd) Zahid Ali Akbar. And sadly, now the Pakistan team has also started catching up on the refrain, as it too no longer lasts five days of a Test match.

In these circumstances, one cannot help but think, re-igniting faith in Pakistan cricket and its set-up would need more than a mere 'Vision'!

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