LAHORE: The Punjab government has taken a significant step towards enhancing cricket talent by officially transferring two top-notch High Performance Centres (HPCs) located in Faisalabad and Sialkot to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
A memorandum of understanding (MoU) signing ceremony took place at the National Hockey Stadium, where Dr. Asif Tufail, DG Youth Affairs Punjab, and Salman Naseer, PCB COO, signed the MoU documents. The Punjab Cabinet granted approval during a cabinet meeting on Feb 18, 2024.
Among those present at the event were Deputy Secretary Liaqat Ali, Project Director PMU Qaiser Raza, Nadeem Khan, PCB’s Director of Domestic Cricket, Junaid Zia, Senior General Manager Domestic, Khayam Qaiser, Director, Ali Bokhari, General Manager Gaddafi Stadium, Ms. Maham, General Manager Legal, and Wahab Riaz, Chief Selector.
The state-of-the-art Sialkot High Performance Cricket Centre covers an area of 55 kanal and was constructed at a cost of Rs 1141 million, while the Faisalabad High Performance Cricket Centre, covering an area of 17.86 kanal, was built at a cost of Rs 1065 million.
Both centres were completed within two and a half years and are fully equipped with modern facilities such as bowling and batting halls with synthetic floors, training halls, swimming pools, dining rooms, and practice pitches.
This move demonstrates a joint effort by the PCB and Punjab government to decentralize cricket development, ensuring the nurturing of talent across various regions, which will ultimately enhance the growth and competitiveness of cricket in Pakistan.
These High Performance Centres are inclusive, welcoming players of all ages and genders. With the addition of these two centres, the PCB’s High-Performance Centre count now reaches five.
