PCB Announces Scholarships for Young Cricketers

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), on Wednesday, announced ‘Pathway Junior Contracts’ for 100 young cricketers under the strategy of investing in youth and pathways cricket following a bottom-up approach.

The decision was made at the 67th meeting of the Board of Governors (BoG) on 21 December in Karachi. PCB Chairman Ramiz Raja presented the idea which was backed by the board members.

Under the Pathway Cricket Foundation initiative, the cricket board will appoint qualified coaches for young cricketers.

“Pathway Junior Contracts – Through strategic partnerships, the PCB will award 100 contracts to the most outstanding and bright cricketers under the ages of 11, 14, 16, and 19. Under this program, the talented young cricketers will receive a stipend of PKR 30,000 per month and also earn 100 percent scholarship,” the cricket board said in a statement.

The scholarship will provide young cricketers access to free education at leading local educational institutions that will help them become wholesome individuals, it added.

Commenting on the new initiative, Chairman PCB said:

In order to create a long-term sustainable process, it is essential that we continue to tap into, stimulate and motivate the youth’s passion and talent for cricket, whilst focusing on a bottom-up approach towards participation and making attempts to bridge the wide divide between pathways and Pakistan cricket journey.

He hoped that the junior contracts would help the raw talent, from the remotest and less privileged areas of Pakistan, reach its full potential.

Through these and various other initiatives, including an all-Pakistan Talent Hunt Program, we aim to unearth the hidden talent and provide them absolute clarity at a very young age that the PCB will back, support and provide a clear pathway through which they can embark on their journey of representing Pakistan at an international stage.