Lawson irked with selectors

Karachi: Pakistan coach Geoff Lawson has expressed unhappiness with the national selection committee for not consulting him in picking the squad for the recent home series against Zimbabwe. In a report to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), Lawson has said that despite assurances, he was ignored during the finalisation of the 15-member squad for the series. PCB rules stipulate that the national selectors must consult the captain and the coach while finalising the squad during a home series. The selectors have the prerogative to pick the final XI, a change from the past when the team management had the sole authority to do this.

“The performance of Afridi will have to be closely monitored before finalising the likely squad for the 2011 World Cup,” he has written.

In the report, Lawson has also made it known that left-arm pacer Kamran Hussain, who made his ODI debut against Zimbabwe, is a quality allrounder who could replace Abdul Razzaq in the future.

Bill Brown is no more

Sydney: Bill Brown, a former Australian Test cricketer and a member of the 1948 ‘Invincibles’ squad that toured England unbeaten, has died at the age of 95, local media reported. Brown died at a nursing home in Brisbane on Sunday. His death could not be immediately confirmed by Cricket Australia (CA) or family members. Only four of the ‘Invincibles’, which included Don Bradman and toured England unbeaten 60 years ago, remain — Neil Harvey, Arthur Morris, Sam Loxton and Ron Hamence.

Former Australia Test captain Steve Waugh said he regarded Brown as a mentor. “He certainly had a very big influence over my era,” Waugh said. “I was very keen to have him involved in the Australian side because I looked at Bill and though he was what the baggy green was all about.” “The spirit he had and the respect he had playing for Australia and what it meant — he understood the modern era very well and gave us a great perspective on what it was like to play in his era.”

Brown is survived by his wife Barbara, three sons, 10 grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren.

Tough times for PCB

Karachi: With the security situation in Pakistan worsening, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is expected to face some tough questions from other boards when the issue of hosting Champions Trophy comes up for discussion during the two-day ICC Executive Board meeting. Although the ICC has said that it is committed to staging the tournament in Pakistan in September, sceptics feel that Saturday’s bomb blast in Islamabad, where foreigners were targeted at an Italian restaurant, has added to the PCB’s problems. “This incident allows other member countries to point out that Australia were justified in postponing their tour,” a source said. “It is too early to predict what the security conditions would be in the next three or four months, especially with a new government, but the future does not appear bright for Pakistan hosting international events and teams,” the source added.