Hyderabad: Pakistan bowler Faheem Ashraf has taken a dig at the umpiring standards in the domestic cricket of Pakistan. He also added that the performances of the umpires are under constant scrutiny nowadays with cameras covering everything happening on the ground.
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has started the domestic tournament, the Champions One Day Cup and the umpiring standards in the tournament have been under question. The tournament began on September 24 and the Markhors, Dolphins, Panthers, Stallions, and Lions are five participating teams in the competition. Shaheen Shah Afridi (Lions), Saud Shakeel (Dolphins), Shadab Khan (Panthers), Mohammad Haris (Stallions), and Mohammad Rizwan (Markhors) are the five captains in the tournament. Also, the Champions Cup includes some notable names like Haris Rauf, Imam-ul-Haq, Usama Mir, Fakhar Zaman, Saim Ayub, and Naseem Shah.
صرف سوچیں یہ بیان عمر اکمل / احمد شہزاد یا کراچی کے کسی کرکٹر نے دیا ہوتا تو کرکٹ بورڈ کیا کرتا pic.twitter.com/nfVmeW7TvL
— Shoaib Jatt (@Shoaib_Jatt) September 19, 2024
Faheem Ashraf who is playing for Champions in the tournament, revealed in the post-match presentation that the players sometimes have decisions in their favour as they are friends with umpires.
“In our domestic cricket, the quality of our umpires is evident, and many have advanced in their careers. The standards of umpiring remain consistent at the domestic level, but the lack of extensive coverage there means that the quality often goes unnoticed,” he remarked.
"However, those responsible for the panel selections need to review the appointments carefully, as every decision is under public scrutiny. In domestic cricket, there is a friendship. If we have friendship, we are safe from the umpires. The umpire takes the number from us. Now there is no friendship in this tournament, so everything is on the screen. You are seeing everything. The whole world is watching. The whole of Pakistan is watching.”
Markhors are at the top of the points table currently winning all of the three matches they have played so far while Stallions are at second place winning two matches out of the three they have played.
