Mohsin Hasan Khan came of age a little over 36 years ago. It was August 12-13, 1982. At Lord’s. In England. Though he had been on the national scene for a few years, he was popping in and out of the national side whenever it suited the hierarchy rather than on the basis of his performance which, at best, was sketchy. He had a lone 50 in One-Day Internationals (ODIs) and a 50 and a hundred in Tests but that didn’t matter much for the Tests were played against a rookie Sri Lankan side. In England, he turned the tables on the naysayers with a double hundred that was all silk and grace. He was dubbed The Lord of Lord’s. All those years later, Mohsin Hasan Khan has found himself to be the lord of everything that he cares to survey in terms of Pakistan cricket. Will it all be silk and grace this time?

What might come handy in his recent appointment will be his exposure to life — and, indeed, survival instinct — in troubled times. His first two decent scores in Test cricket against the Sri Lankans came in 1982 in a series that will always be remembered for non-cricketing reasons, for it was played when almost all the first-choice players had decided to sit it out in revolt against Javed Miandad’s appointment as the national captain. The rebellion ended by the last Test in the series after a behind-the-scenes compromise was reached that saw Miandad bowing out and Imran Khan stepping up to be the new captain. Mohsin survived and went on to form one of the leading opening duos for Pakistan with Mudassar Nazar. The dashing Mohsin and the dour Mudassar served the country with distinction like few others have done at the top of the order.

Not long after his heroics at Lord’s, Mohsin made it big in Australia with scores of 149 at Adelaide and 152 in Melbourne. Both came in December 1983 on a tour that was strewn with controversy between Imran and Zaheer Abbas that was covered up with compromise. Mohsin survived and, though he never touched those peaks again, he remained a decent cricketer till he got so impressed with his own good looks and debonair presence that he fancied his chances in the movie industry. But that is another story.

Mohsin Hasan Khan, the head of the newly formed ‘Cricket Committee’, has some pending questions to answer

What matters in the current context is his ability to survive and thrive in a cesspool of controversies. He was a success story when the ball moved around disconcertingly in England and bounced uncomfortably in Australia. And he is now headquartered in Lahore which, incidentally, saw him score the remaining four of his seven Test centuries. Lahore clearly suited him as a player and will hopefully suit him now as he sets out to put Pakistan cricket on what has been rather rhetorically described as ‘the right track.’

This time, though, he will be troubled not as much by the ‘opponents’ as by his own comments about some of the stakeholders with whom he has chosen to work in tandem now. Wasim Akram and Mickey Arthur, to be precise. Before we move any further, it needs to be clarified that several attempts were made to have Mohsin’s views included in these lines, and contact was established both through text messages and telephonically, but unfortunately he was too busy working out the right track to answer any query. Finally, two simple questions were texted to him with ample time to answer and with due elaboration about how journalistic deadlines work. The answers never came and whenever they come, they will be duly accommodated right here. That is a commitment, Mohsin.

Here are the two questions verbatim that many are asking: “One: Has the PCB boss shared any specific evidence that convinced you about the ‘tainted’ players; evidence that is not shared with the public at large? Two: You have been critical of Mickey Arthur. Do you plan to do something about that first or will you focus on the domestic circuit in terms of priority?”

Regardless of his after-thoughts on the issue, what Ehsan Mani said at the briefing while introducing the members of the Cricket Committee was simply a grand exhibition of over-simplification to justify his choices. The famed Justice Qayyum Report on Match-fixing is a document that has been quoted for 18 years in world cricket. To call it an “inconclusive document” was an embarrassing attempt to belittle it. And the man is still alive and could have been asked to interpret his own report for the benefit of the PCB. Besides, those who so wished actually challenged it in the courts and got relief on a case-to-case basis. The option not to challenge a verdict is, legally and ethically, an admission of guilt. The PCB did well to go back on Mani’s earlier stance.

The argument about others named in the report having served in different capacities both in Pakistan and abroad also needs to be seen in its proper perspective. The others were fined. Wasim was fined and was recommended to be kept away from positions of authority and to face an investigation to see if his lifestyle matched his declared income. There is a difference, you see. Wasim’s words on the occasion — “… that is all in the past” — will be difficult to get approval from the highest administrative office in the land, which has time and again clarified that there will be no NRO (read: compromise) for anyone.

Even otherwise, Wasim and Mohsin have been at odds previously. When Mohsin refused to apply for the job of national coach because the applications were to be vetted by Wasim and Ramiz Raja, the left-armer had some harsh words to say in public. “What sort of attitude and mindset is this? One former player [Mohsin, of course] said I will apply and talk directly to the chairman. When you have such a mindset how can one expect them to work well with the Pakistan team?” Interestingly, now the two mindsets are sitting together to set things right not between themselves but across the board.

As for Mickey, he was the one who was chosen by the Wasim-Ramiz committee and Mohsin has never been impressed by the choice, having recently called him “stupid” and a “donkey”. This is not for us less mortals to say whether or not the descriptions were deserved, the point here is that there is bad blood splashed all over and still gushing out as Mickey, according to media reports, has already made it clear that he will interact with the committee only after Mohsin tenders an unconditional apology. Will he? Well, the moment Mohsin answers the text message, it will be communicated right here. Let’s wait … and watch.

humair.ishtiaq@gmail.com

Published in Dawn, EOS, November 4th, 2018