Aleem Dar Appointed to Pakistan Cricket Selection Committee

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced a significant change in its national selection committee, appointing former Test umpire Aleem Dar as a member. This surprising move came shortly after the Pakistani cricket team faced a crushing innings and 47-run defeat against England, despite scoring over 500 runs in the first innings of the match in Multan.

Aleem Dar, who recently retired from an illustrious international umpiring career, is the first umpire to be appointed to such a position by the PCB. During his 20-year career, Dar officiated in 448 international matches and was a member of the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) Elite Panel of Umpires since 2003. He was awarded the David Shepherd Trophy for ICC Umpire of the Year on three occasions.

Joining Dar on the revamped selection committee are former Test players Aaqib Javed and Azhar Ali, along with sports analyst Hassan Cheema. Asad Shafiq, a former Test batter, was already a part of the committee after the recent resignation of Muhammad Yousuf. All members of this new selection panel will possess voting rights. However, the PCB has not clarified the roles of head coaches Gary Kirsten and Jason Gillespie regarding their potential influence on decisions made by the committee.

The committee’s immediate task is to select the squad for the remaining two Tests against England, as well as for the forthcoming white-ball series in Australia and South Africa. The announcement of the new appointments followed Pakistan’s disappointing test sequence on home ground, with the defeat to England marking a historic first: becoming the first team to lose a Test by an innings after posting 500-plus runs in their initial innings.

The PCB has been undergoing leadership changes, and the selection panel has been restructured multiple times under different chairpersons since last year. The new appointments aim to bring fresh perspectives and strategies to the team’s selection process, although no head of the committee has been named yet.

Aleem Dar’s entry into the committee has garnered widespread attention, considering it is rare for former umpires to transition to such administrative cricketing roles. While he will continue to umpire domestically and in international home matches for the remainder of Pakistan’s 2024-25 domestic season, his move to the selection committee marks a new chapter in his professional journey.