Emirates Cricket Board outgoing CEO satisfied with arrangements for Pak-Australia series in UAE

Dubai -  The outgoing chief executive officer of the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB), Dilawar Mani, has expressed satisfaction over the arrangements made for the one-day series between Pakistan and Australia.

In an interview with PakPassion.net, Mani, who has overseen the establishment of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as a world-class center for international cricket in the last three years, claimed credit for the three major home series against South Africa, Sri Lanka and England.

Describing the six Pakistan-Australia one-day matches as his last and most demanding assignment as head of the ECB, Mani said: " Obviously, the weather is a key talking point, I don't think the venues are.

The venues have been tried and tested and are internationally recognised, I don't think we should even go there."

"So the issue that does remain is obviously of the uniqueness of the timing of the series. In terms of the timings, there have obviously been certain concerns, but we're trying our best to address them. Given that it will be August / early-September which are hot and humid months, special care is being taken, for example, to increase the number of ice baths in each venue and ice jackets, energy drinks - to double the quotas literally," he added.

He said that the matches would start at 6 p.m. instead of 5 p.m. to counter the heat.

He said that Sharjah holds the record for the number of one day internationals held, and Dubai is very experienced - this is going to be the eighth or ninth night series that they're hosting, so those aren't the challenges. The challenge is strictly the timing, he added.

On attendance and transport arrangements, Mani said: "I'm not sure that it is a concern. With a late start, obviously it would finish late, but we're trying to give it as many weekend games as possible which obviously will help."

He said that fans would seriously consider coming to the venues in the evenings, as the temperature drops, there's no direct sunlight and it will be relatively cooler.

"In terms of transport arrangements, I would be surprised if you would have heard that with any relevance to Abu Dhabi. Abu Dhabi was arranged with the national taxi people. They had 50 cars parked there at all times. Abu Dhabi is not an issue and Sharjah is already in the heart of the city so again I don't think it's a major issue," Mani said.

Arrangements would be made for standby taxis in Dubai, he added.

He described his stint as Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) CEO as being in the right place at the right time.

"I've tried hard. You say legacy, I say foundation. To me the foundations are there, and it really does need to be taken to the next level, and the next level is its commercial success. I think that needs to be addressed now," he said.

"Basically, we've held enough cricket, so we are internationally extremely well-established and well known. The venues are fantastic and the revival of Sharjah has been a major boost. They've come back very strongly and full credit to them for making the investment. We just need to make sure that we find enough sponsorships and commercial investments to find money in the game so we can reinvest it to further enhance everything - that's the next step," he added.

He said that he believed he had completed his stint, and it was time for someone else to come in to take it to the next level.