Intikhab Alam is a man in demand. The day news of him being a possible replacement for Geoff Lawson trickled in, the Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) made a formal announcement of having appointed Intikhab Alam as their new coach. The PCA said that a formal letter had already been sent to Alam, asking him to join from September 1.
The man in question, however, remained non-committal to either post. While he remained tight-tipped on whether he has got any offer from the PCB, the former Pakistan skipper admitted he had spoken with the PCA.
He, however, chose not to commit himself to the PCA job, even after being told that the PCA had already made a formal announcement.
“You will have to wait for a week or so to know the exact situation. I haven’t decided anything as of now,” said Alam.
This reluctance to clear the air looks strange, especially after the formal announcement. This could only lead one to believing that he has perhaps got an indication from the PCB and is biding his time and weighing the feasibility and pros and cons of the offer.
And if that’s not the case, then probably the PCA has made the announcement prematurely, without his approval. That, however, doesn’t look plausible for it’s highly unlikely that the PCA would have sent the formal letter to him and gone public with their decision without him having agreed to it. Incidentally, the former Pakistan skipper has already worked with both organisations in the past. He was the manager of Pakistan’s World Cup-winning squad in 1992 and he has coached Punjab’s Ranji Trophy squad for two seasons in 2004-05 and 2005-06. He took Punjab to the final of the Ranji Trophy in his first season, before failing to reach the semis in the next.
{{/usCountry}}And if that’s not the case, then probably the PCA has made the announcement prematurely, without his approval. That, however, doesn’t look plausible for it’s highly unlikely that the PCA would have sent the formal letter to him and gone public with their decision without him having agreed to it. Incidentally, the former Pakistan skipper has already worked with both organisations in the past. He was the manager of Pakistan’s World Cup-winning squad in 1992 and he has coached Punjab’s Ranji Trophy squad for two seasons in 2004-05 and 2005-06. He took Punjab to the final of the Ranji Trophy in his first season, before failing to reach the semis in the next.
{{/usCountry}}Anyhow, it would be interesting to see who wins over Alam.
Ashutosh Sharma adds from Mohali. Meanwhile, outgoing Punjab coach Gursharan Singh is not too sure why his contract wasn’t renewed.
“I have no idea, why I was not given another term and would not like to comment on it. The team was new but they are a talented lot. I am sure they will perform better this season,” Gursharan said.