Nothing depicts the bankruptcy of the PCB more than Ehsan Mani's elevation to the highest global office in cricket - the position of ICC's Chairman, on rotation in 2003 on Pakistan's turn. It reflects that either the Pakistani cricketing establishment is totally devoid of credible faces back home or it lacks in ideas to promote genuine articles.

First some background. In the '90s, such cricketing icons with management background as Colin Cowdrey and Clyde Walcott have remained the ICC Chairmen, followed by cricket management gurus Jagmohan Dalmiya and the current incumbent Malcolm Gray. This quartet had for long years been part of the cricketing establishment in the nations they represented. In case of Dalmiya, he still remains a very powerful member of the Board and head of the prestigious Bengal Cricket Association.

Let us look at it from another angle. Dalmiya, Madhavrao Scindia, IS Bindra and Raj Singh Dungarpur have all been presidents of the Board of Cricket Control in India in recent times - and hence represented their country in the ICC. None of them is president now, but they retain positions as members of the Board. This continuity factor is something that helps the Indians establish their credibility in the ICC.

Mani, little known even in the Pakistani cricket circles, on the other hand, has never been associated with the PCB directly. A chartered accountant by profession, Mani is a London-based businessman, said to be involved, among other things, first in shipping and afterwards in telecommunications. He was nominated to represent Pakistan as the third member in mid '80s. A situation, which has continued to this day, especially because of the high turnover factor in the PCB. Not only has it made continuity impossible, but made other permanent members of the ICC very much wary of the representatives from Pakistan (a malaise which has of late afflicted Sri Lanka as well).

In the case of PCB, it merely is not a case of continuity but also the quality of individuals that it keeps sending over to represent it - people with little idea of the game or its management.

Look at it this way. Since the late Abdul Hafeez Kardar in mid '70s, we have only sent very few really capable people to represent us. The honourable exceptions being Air Marshal (Retd) Nur Khan and Majid Khan, and perhaps Arif Abbasi (the general opinion about him being that he was too clever by half). Khalid Mahmood too came from a cricket management background, and right from the grassroots level, but his period at the helm was too short to make a real impact.

The enduring problem with the PCB has been that mostly either three-star generals wangle their way in or political cronies land up as Chairmen. They have a whale of a time at the swing, but Pakistan cricket is poorer because they end up contributing little or next to nothing. Actually, they are not equipped to do the job and their knowledge of the game, and sports management - which are highly specialised fields these days - is less than elementary. To Pakistan's immense discredit, when they rub shoulders with the elite of the elite in the world at the ICC level, they stand badly exposed. Hence, they require props like Mani to bail them out.

And, apart from being a slick operator, since Mani has been there for too long and obviously understands the intricacies and the machinations far better, he has ingratiated himself with everybody who is anybody in the game. That said, he has to his credit some genuine service to the game as well. Since 1996, when the ICC was reformed, he has been its Director Finance and Marketing. In this position he has done some pioneering work, like devising a formula by which the World Cups are now allotted and organised, which is indeed known as the 'Mani Papers'.

Mani, however, should have remained there as the ICC's Director, Marketing and Finance. But he finds himself elevated, because the PCB Chairman, never inviting any debate or discussion in the media, decided in his wisdom to nominate Mani. Wouldn't it have been better, that like Cowdrey and Walcott, had the PCB too nominated someone of impeccable credentials? Someone like Majid Khan, who was highly respected as a player and then as CEO of the PCB. Or maybe Imran Khan. Someone like Majid or Imran would have lent his stature to the ICC and earned credit for Pakistan. Let us see what India did when it was time to nominate someone to the ICC's Cricket Committee. They put forward Sunil Gavaskar's name, and he has done, quite predictably, such a great job that it has enhanced the credibility of ICC and Indian cricket.

The question is why can't the PCB emulate other front-line nations while making such decisions? Perhaps, it is a case of a financially rich Board's unimaginative, bankrupt decision-making, which is contributing not only in a nosedive in the Pakistan team's fortunes and credibility but also stunting development in other avenues.

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