Illyas` appointment as chief selector withdrawn by PCB

Karachi: Former Test player Muhammad Illyas lost his position as the Chief Selector without even having a chance to see his appointment being made public by the Pakistan Cricket Board, which instead named former skipper Aamir Sohail for the post.

Illyas, who was given the appointment letter of a paid chief selector with a monthly salary of around 235,000 rupees last month, learnt to his dismay yesterday that the PCB`s Governing Board had dumped him and instead decided to give the chief selector`s job to Sohail. "The Governing Board backed the appointment of Sohail as chief selector at its meeting and Illyas will now be selector for the women`s and under-19 cricket teams only," a source said. Incidentally, both Illyas and Sohail have served as chief selectors in the past. The source said that Illyas could also be part of the new selection committee as a member if Sohail agreed to accept him. "Yes, Illyas was given a appointment letter making him chief selector last month but then some people including Javed Miandad asked the board Chairman Zaka Ashraf to go for a high profile name like Sohail," the source informed. "That is why the board never announced the appointment of Illyas," he explained. The new chief selector`s first task will be to pick Pakistan`s one-day squad for the Asia Cup and then the World T20 Cup squad, both events to be held in Bangladesh. Sohail served as chief selector in 2002 and 2003.