21,000 students are taking part in PCB Talent Hunt Programme: Naqvi
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi inaugurated the second season of the Talent Hunt Programme for Schools in Lahore on Saturday, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.
The event was held at Nishtar Sports Stadium in Lahore. The inaugural match was played between cricket teams from Beaconhouse and Aitchison College. The PCB chairman also interacted with the players during the inaugural ceremony.
Addressing the gathering, Mohsin Naqvi said that more than 1,000 schools are registered in this phase.
He said that around 21,000 students from 1,400 schools across 100 districts will compete in 2,895 matches, with promising young cricketers gaining opportunities to progress to regional academies and national age-group cricket.
Mohsin Naqvi said that there is no doubt about the abundance of cricketing talent in Pakistan. This is a country where players have consistently emerged from streets, neighbourhoods and school grounds to go on to represent Pakistan at some of the biggest cricketing venues around the world.
He said that the challenge is not a lack of talent, but reaching that talent at the right time, identifying it and providing it with the right direction to progress.
The Pakistan Cricket Board believes that its responsibility goes beyond organising matches and tournaments.
The PCB chairman said that a strong cricketing system is built when talented children are identified at an early age, given opportunities to play, provided with the right training to develop their abilities, and offered a clear pathway to progress. This is what makes school cricket so important to the future of Pakistan cricket.
With this objective, a number of new tournaments and programmes have been introduced at the school level. The School Cricket Programme launched last year was an important step in the same direction. During 2025–26, 450 schools from 39 districts participated in the programme, representing the largest participation in school cricket in Pakistan at that time.
️ PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi's media talk ahead of the inauguration of Rivaj Presents University of Lahore PCB Talent Hunt Season 2 at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore #SchoolToStadium | #PakistanFutureStars | #PCBTalentHunt pic.twitter.com/P7GVgShGYx
— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) September 19, 2026
Reporter: Waqas Ahmad