Had Sleepless Nights For Bringing International Cricket To PAK: Wasim

Following the 2009 terror attack on the Sri Lankan squad, former PCB chief executive Wasim Khan stated that getting international cricket back to Pakistan became a huge task. On September 30, Khan resigned, mainly because of disputes with the PCB’s newly-appointed chairman, Ramiz Raja.

Khan was named as CEO in 2019 considering his 4 years tenure as the chief executive of Leicestershire. Khan’s agreement was supposed to expire in 2022, but he opted to leave before that anyway. During his tenure, Khan stated that he has always fought for the improvement of Pakistani cricket. “Unfortunately, my time at the Pakistan Cricket Board has come to an end,” said Khan.

“As a British Pakistani and a former professional cricketer, I committed to moving to Pakistan just under 3 years ago, so that I could contribute to improving the global image of the PCB and the country. My aim was to contribute to the betterment of the game under the spotlight of a cricket-crazed nation of 220 million people,” he stated.

I feel gratitude and love for the Pakistan fans: Khan

Pakistan took 6 years to reintroduce international cricket to their country. Zimbabwe visited the country in 2015, followed by Sri Lanka, World XI, Bangladesh, finally South Africa. Khan stated that he had sleepless nights in order to restore peace to Pakistan cricket.

“Bringing international cricket back, mixed in with sleepless nights dealing with crisis management, or averting a potential crisis, and navigating through highly politically charged situations were just part and parcel of the exhilaration that came with the role,” Khan stated.

“In a couple of weeks’ time when I fly out of Lahore, heading back to England, I know that I will feel nothing but gratitude and love for the fans of Pakistan,” he added.

Pakistan cricket has suffered a setback when New Zealand and England canceled their Pakistan tours.