PCB takes school cricket to 1,400 schools across 100 districts

The Pakistan Cricket Board has widened its school cricket programme to reach 1,400 schools in 100 districts, ProPakistani reported on Friday, extending the search for young players from Gilgit in Gilgit-Baltistan to Gwadar on the Balochistan coast.

Dawn’s headline said the talent search now runs 'From Gilgit to Gwadar', while the Express Tribune described the move as 'Taking cricket to the next generation'. The Express Tribune reported the expansion is aimed at unearthing emerging talent across Pakistan, with schools at the centre of the PCB’s player-development work.

The 1,400-school and 100-district figures were carried by ProPakistani. The Express Tribune did not give a school count but confirmed the programme had been expanded. Neither report listed the age groups, coaching arrangements, trial schedules or equipment support.

The expansion covers a wide geographic arc, from the mountainous north to the southern coast. It is intended to move the talent hunt beyond traditional clubs and academies into classrooms and school grounds, where children who might not have access to organised cricket can be spotted early.

For regions such as Gilgit-Baltistan, where organised school cricket has historically received less attention than in Punjab or Sindh, the inclusion of Gilgit was highlighted by Dawn. The reports did not specify how many of the 1,400 schools are in Gilgit-Baltistan or when trials would begin.

The PCB had not issued a separate statement in the reports reviewed, but the coordinated coverage by three outlets suggests the rollout was announced to media. The programme is part of a wider effort by the board to build a junior player pool outside conventional cricket centres and give more children a structured route into district and regional teams. No funding figures or implementation timeline were included in the initial reports.