 Even as Pakistan grapples with a test series loss and a 0-3 ODI series loss -
with two more games to play - the knives have begun to come out for the team from
various quarters. Many former players have joined the calls to question the captaincy,
coaching, selection and even the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and blame
them for the losses.
Pakistan had lost the three test match series 2-0, and are 0-3 down in the
five match ODI series, with two more matches to be played. Earlier, Pakistan
had won the ICC World T20 and was expected to give Sri Lanka a run for its money.
Former Pakistani opener, Aamir Sohail questioned the selection of two
makeshift openers in the playing eleven. This, he said, despite the presence
of two frontline openers in the squad, in the form of Nasir Jamshed and
Imran Nazir. Nazir, incidentally, hasn't played a single game in the
series so far, while Jamshed had missed the first game when Shoaib Malik
had opened the innings for the Pakistanis.
He said, "No one, from the board officials to the team management, seems
to have a clear plan in mind. Some of the decisions make no sense, like two
regular openers were sent to Sri Lanka but we used makeshift openers
in the series which we have lost now."
Zaheer Abbas was also critical of the Pakistan Cricket Board, and said
that the ICC World T20 triumph had only managed to hide all the chinks away.
He said that ever since the current administration of the PCB had taken over,
they had lost the hosting rights for the Champions Trophy, had been stripped
of World Cup 2011 matches and have failed to handle the team.
He also said that both, the coach and the captain, do not belong there and
should be sacked. He said that Younus Khan lacked the abilities of a
true leader.
Former selector Abdul Qadir, who had quit from job even as the Pakistani
team were on the road to their World T20 triumph, said that while defeats were
a part and parcel of the game, shameful defeats are totally unacceptable. He
also made allegations that there were chances that there were some match-fixers
within the team.
Rashid Latif was less scathing in his criticism and said that the players needed
to go back to their basics without any interference in team planning.
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