Former Pakistan cricket great and chief of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf, Imran Khan, on Sunday blamed “political pressure” and “cronyism” for the international team’s consistent poor performances.

In an outpour on Twitter, Imran said Prime Minister Nawaz had “perfected the art of cronyism” and had appointed an “election fixer” to “fix” Pakistan cricket.

The former captain said “the reason cricket has, unlike elsewhere, failed to become an institution in Pak is because here PM appoints PCB chief.”

Imran’s solution to Pakistan’s woes is to “insulate” cricket from “political pressure.”

He also repeated his earlier demands to revamp the domestic cricket structure to improve players’ “temperament” and “technique.”

Imran proposed a domestic cricket circuit on the lines of Australia, where all talent is “concentrated in six regional teams” and ‘all departments instead of fielding their own teams should support the regional teams.

The PTI chief also stressed that funds be directed to more productive uses instead of “wasting money on senseless expenditures.” He said Pakistan was in a dire need of more cricket grounds.

Opinion

Editorial

Unmasking stability
Updated 20 Jul, 2026

Unmasking stability

THREE reports last Friday — a widening food trade gap, return to a current account deficit, and the government’s...
Flood data gap
20 Jul, 2026

Flood data gap

HAVING endured one of its worst floods last year — triggered by intense monsoons and compounded by sudden water...
Zero-dose alert
20 Jul, 2026

Zero-dose alert

ALTHOUGH Pakistan recently announced its first National Vaccine Policy, it will take time before the immunity gap ...
Gulf escalation
Updated 19 Jul, 2026

Gulf escalation

The threat of the war restarting and the conflict expanding is very real.
Looming monsoon
19 Jul, 2026

Looming monsoon

THE monsoon season is here. The Pakistan Meteorological Department has issued a nationwide alert for widespread,...
Closing one file
19 Jul, 2026

Closing one file

ABDUL Rashid Wani was stopped by Indian soldiers near his home in Srinagar in July 1997. He never returned. Nearly...