Why Zaheer Abbas as ICC chief will be good for India-Pakistan cricket

The last time I met Zaheer Abbas was during Sachin Tendulkar’s farewell Test in November 2013. He was one of the "experts" on the panel that the TV channel with which I was associated, had assembled for the Little Master’s swansong.

Among the things we discussed off-camera was the future of Pakistan cricket, indeed the sport itself. At the top level, barely 10 countries play cricket, half of them always seem to be in some kind of strife, the worst affected in the past decade being his own country.

It seemed then Zaheer was hoping to get into administration in the Pakistan Cricket Board. When I tossed the question at him, he only shrugged his shoulders to suggest that this was out of his control. Or any other player’s for that matter.

The PCB as an administrative body has been extremely fickle and notorious in keeping former cricketers out of the power matrix – barring as selectors or coaches. Even former captain Ramiz Raja, who was once CEO, lasted barely a year.

"Pakistan has to win over other countries to play them more often," said Zaheer. "It won’t be easy to have matches at home, but unless Pakistan is engaged regularly, the sport’s influence in the country will diminish. The big factor in this is Indo-Pak cricket."

That is not just the big, but the X factor in the sport, though there have been hints and cues that cricket between the two arch-rivals may be resumed late this year or early next. Can Zaheer Abbas, newly appointed President of the International Cricket Council (ICC), be of some help here?

I think he could. Zaheer is not just a legendary batsman, but one of the finest ambassadors of the game: a sanguine personality with few prickly edges, and a breadth of vision – from years of playing all over the world and later as a media person – that can help him move out of the stifling confines of the tu-tu-main-main which dogs Indo-Pak relations in all spheres.

He has also, over the years, become a great friend of India – with fans, players and administrators. In his playing days, he was a nemesis: more than one third of his 5,062 Test runs and half his 12 Test centuries have come against Indian bowlers.

Much as every Indian cricket lover admired his silken touch, they all willed him to be dismissed as early and cheaply as possible. His penchant for big scores – and the pace at which he scored them – made him a terrific match-winner, but much feared and loathed in India.

But after he shed his flannels and turned his bats into memorabilia, Zaheer has become a bridge of sort for Indo-Pak relations what with his marriage too an Indian lady, apart from the times he has had to come on as a media expert.

To be frank, the ICC president’s post is largely ceremonial and brief. The tenure if for a year, and Zaheer was not even first choice. Najam Sethi, former journalist and now Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief, was handpicked for the post, but pulled out at the last minute after the PCB decided to give a former player the opportunity.

This was badly needed by a country where past players are widely reduced to fretting and grumbling – apart from those like Wasim Akram, Ramiz Raja and Shoaib Akhtar who have made lucrative careers as commentators.

In the context, Zaheer’s choice is inspired. He has the seniority and stature which affords the ICC president’s post prestige. This was important after the preceding one, Bangladesh’s Mustafa Kamal, quit in a huff claiming "insult" by ICC chairman N Srinivasan during the World Cup closing ceremony.

I suspect Srinivasan has had some say in Zaheer’s appointment once it was decided that a Pakistani would take the job after Bangladesh refused to fill the breach created by Kamal’s resignation. As was evidenced when he was BCCI president too, Srinivasan likes to operate with past stalwarts by his side. It must also be mentioned, that he treats them with respect. If he and Zaheer can forge a good relationship quickly, the roadmap for Indo-Pak cricket could become clearer.

Obviously there will be unforeseen twists, turns and hairpin bends along the way given that Indo-Pak cricket relations are subject to the volatility of the politics between the two countries. But having two of the most senior functionaries in the ICC on the same page will hopefully be of some help.