'Fazzled' by the PCB--THE NEWS

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http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=13730

'Fazzled' by the PCB

Masood Hasan

The statements of three gentlemen who are associated with Pakistan cricket regarding our chances on the tour of England, which has just begun, have a ringing sound of a large death rattle. Between Bob Woolmer, Mudassar Nazar and Inzimam of the 'Boyz' fame, please be ready to experience some really bad news from England. The English team, which has to date lost nine of its last eleven ODIs, is expected to miraculously find new life, new form and new resolve in quantities large enough to beat us this summer. Of course cricket being cricket, anything and everything can happen, but this cunning ploy to plant the seedlings of bad news well ahead is basically an insurance policy just in case things go wrong -- which with the Pakistan team is almost always a given. It should be an interesting summer indeed.

But the matter at hand is Fazal Mahmood and the Fazal Room at the Oval, the ground where in 1954, Pakistan handed England a memorable defeat thanks to the Fazal-Imtiaz combination and of course Fazal's 12 wickets in the low scoring match. A headline of the day moaning England's demise said the English had been 'Fazzled.' Now it seems that the great Fazal has been 'Fazzled' by the PCB. The room at the Oval, which was earlier being named after Fazal is now to be called Pakistan Room, where strange looking portraits of our former greats will hang. There is nothing wrong with that, but initially it was my understanding and that of many others that the Fazal Room was chosen for the Oval simply because it was this ground where Pakistan made history thanks to Fazal's heroic feats. Why the switch to Pakistan Room and inclusion of other cricketers who had done nothing great on this particular ground? The PCB had also given a very clear message once this project was announced that it was spearheading the entire show and the large sum of money raised had been its doing, a story that has now changed and the actual fund raisers -- the common Pakistanis who live in England have been grudgingly given credit. Whatever it is, this is a good move and although this money will help the Oval too which is said to be in a tight financial crunch, it will also project our country positively.

It is the portrait of Fazal commissioned by the PCB through Mr Shahnawaz Zaidi -- who I assume is not related to Abbas Zaidi, the PCB's man for all seasons -- that is an irksome matter. It simply does not look like Fazal and is a very poorly executed piece of work. Heaven forbid, Mr Zaidi is no Michelangelo, but this is indeed a strange portrayal. Firstly the pose is totally unlike Fazal's. Those who have seen Fazal bowl or seen his pictures in action will readily agree. Fazal, like any class bowler, had a unique action and a picture of that period captures it all. That action picture had become the trademark and all that PCB or the two Zaidis had to do was look at it. Fazal's most well-known and loving mark was the kissing curl that would frequently appear on his forehead. It was typical of the icon he was in those days. Dashing, romantic, good looking and the tossing curl did the trick. In the portrait, the curl is gone. It's like showing Elizabeth Taylor without her eyes. Shaista, Fazal's daughter has been pleading with the PCB and its errant painter to change the look of the portrait. She is on record to say that her father never had blue but light eyes and it was his posture and mannerism that made him look like a dashing movie star. Worse, the sweater Fazal wears in the portrait is not his or the one cricketers in 1954 were wearing. There is little similarity between the two designs and even though she personally carried her father's sweater to show Mr Zaidi twice, it apparently made no difference. Instead, a strange looking man, holding a small mini ball in his hand looking at the viewer is what we have. In a 'ceremony' to which one and all were called to witness the revealation of the portrait -- and to which ceremony no one from Fazal's family was invited, the PCB was showered with accolades for a job well done. Instead of a member of the Fazal family inaugurating the portrait at the Oval this summer, it is going to be the artist himself who has already flown courtesy the PCB. Close friends of Fazal are distressed at this nonsense and people like Yawar Saeed are furious, but who's asking them? Not the PCB. The portrait is gone and will duly hang at The Oval. So what if it's a bad work of art or inaccurate? Who cares?

It would be silly really to complain about such trivia in the context of what all is going on in Pakistan. Far too many things of far too much import are unhinging us. A bad portrait is not going to make or break things but it simply highlights the indifference that is now our hallmark.
Rest of it at the link, as this only pertained to cricket

The writer is a Lahore-based columnist. Email: masood_news@yahoo.com
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this seems to be an interesting article written in the NEWS, a bit different than the usual cricket news. I never saw fazal mehmood bowling so cant really comment. Sounds like politics of PCB at it again. Dont agree with his first point in saying that our coach has been said to be ready for gloom or doom.

I am too lazy to read all of this. Sum it up, and send it to my door.

It is SO tiring opening up PakPassion every single day, so I also need you to live with me, to open my internet explorer window, and typing it in. I also need you to click the stuff for me, and know how to type with your eyes and ears closed, so you can type in my password.



But do sum it up, its in this fancy lingo, and its long. I read the first 2 sentences, and just closed my PC.

you need to send your grievences to Mr. Gates, or you can wait till MS vista comes out next year. and i did sum it up