Cricket team debacle

E-Paper | June 13, 2026

THE dismal performance of our cricket team in the Champions Trophy has disappointed all cricket lovers in Pakistan, having finished last on the table amongst a total of eight teams.

It is the batting line-up which has failed. In all the three matches that were lost, our team could not even reach the 200-run mark. I think we are missing a match-winning player like Shahid Afridi or Razzak in the team.

The present setup does not even have a batsman who can hang on till the end and also score runs at a reasonable rate. I consider Misbah too slow and too old for the job. All other teams have some hard hitters and consistent batting performers.

It is time we started building a team for the next World Cup. Players like Imran Farhat, Kamran Akmal, Shoaib Malik and Misbah have no place in the One-Day squad. They have a poor record of delivering in crunch situations.

There is no dearth of talent in Pakistan. I am sure we can find suitable replacements for Shahid Afridi, Razzak, Younus Khan and Yousuf.

Another factor which has contributed to our team’s failure is that our batsmen lack both temperament and technique to play on fast, seaming and grassy tracks.

We have to improve our domestic cricket so that talented players are picked up and groomed at the right time. There is also a need to revamp the entire selection procedure. The Pakistan Cricket Board chairman should be a professional and not a political appointee.

CDRE (r) SAJJAD ALI SHAH BOKHARI Islamabad

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Asif Saeed Haider

Jun 19, 2013 09:05am

Everybody knows where the problem lies. Why players do not feel ashamed after the defeat. I think we need to work more on their mental fitness rather physical fitness. Another important factor of failure is lack of good captaincy and unity among players.

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AMIR CHEEMA

Jun 19, 2013 10:32am

If Misbah remains captain then Shoaib Malik and Imran Farhat will keep playing. Why Misbah kept playing these players despite their poor performance. Keeping Misbah as captain will be a big mistake. He would not allow chance to new batsmen because if they perform well then Misbah may also lose his place in the team. He wants to keep useless players so that people appreciate his batting. I have not seen Misbah win matches by his performance. He played Omer Ameen at number 7 and by then the run rate is already around 8. He did same with Umar Akmal and Ehsan Adil. He intentionally tried to ruin career of young players. Misbah can play as team member. Look at his record against established one day teams.

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AMIR CHEEMA

Jun 19, 2013 10:36am

Misbah should be held responsible for the humiliation in Champions Trophy. Being the skipper he hand picked the team based on connections. How can he justify inclusion of Shoaib Malik and Imran farhat in the team despite consistent failures in last few years. This team was extremely lucky to win against minnows such as Ireland. It would have been further humiliation to lose series against the Ireland. Essentially Pakistan has been playing with nine players against opponent's eleven since Shoaib and Farhat predictably failed to deliver in any of the matches. Misbah must be sacked from captaincy. Also the selectors should be held responsible and sacked from their posts. India has done well by including new faces and Pakistan needs to give young players a chance. If India can drop Sehwag, Ghambhir, Yuvraj Singh then why Pakistan cant drop senior players who have failed consistently. Pakistan A team will do better than current team. Team must be be picked solely on performance not on reputations or connections with PCB officials. Shameful performance by Pakistan team and selectors.

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AMIR CHEEMA

Jun 19, 2013 10:34am

It is the captain who decides who plays a match and who sits on the benches. Don't blame batting if Misbah keeps playing Shoaib Malik and Imran Farhat.

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realistskeptic

Jun 19, 2013 06:18pm

Shahid Afridi, Abdul Razzaq, Imran Farhat, Kamran Akmal and Shoaib Malik are all empty fired bullet shells. Pakistan will continue to struggle until cricket setup in the country is totally revamped. Raw talent alone will never make a team consistent and batting will continue to falter in testing conditions. The least said about fielding the better, when youngsters like Umar Amin drop regulation catches like that of Hashim Amla, you know how good the rest of the team fares. To become a side of the caliber of Australia during the Warne-Mcgrath-Hayden-Ponting-Gilchrist era, you have to have an outstanding system with outstanding grounds, modern coaching and other professionals like analysts, bio-mechanic experts, strength and conditioning coaches, sports psychologists, etc. Without this system in place you will continue to rotate inconsistent players and remain a mediocre side that will continue embarrassing us all.

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Rashid Sultan

Jun 19, 2013 08:27pm

Sajjad Ali Shah Bokhari sahib, it is only a game. In any game if one side wins, the other loses. And a team, where many teams are involved, while one of them comes first, another has to come first from the bottom. Pakistan came first from the bottom. So what? It is only a game. Keep your hair on Commodore sahib and keep good cheer. There are more important things to feel despondent about - crime, illiteracy, poverty, unhappiness, illness, corruption, politicians, mullahs, etc. No need to despair. The team tried and took part. That itself is an achievement. Surely you have other interests besides watching cricket?

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Atif

Jun 20, 2013 02:40pm

Green, seaming wickets? Really? Perhaps you had muted the TV and didn't listen to commentary. These were very subcontinental conditions, which is why India is successful. Otherwise, they would have failed miserably as well as their recent record in such conditions shows. Pakistani batting failed in home-like conditions. That's the real debacle.

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Atif

Jun 20, 2013 02:41pm

@Rashid Sultan: What a rediculous post. May be you are not interested in cricket but most of the country is. Given so much attention and air time for cricket in Pakistan, only those disinterested in the game will fail to notice the absolutely pathetic performance of the team. That team took part should be celebrated as an achievement suggests that Pakistan were an associate nation who should just be grateful for a chance in the tournament.

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Jun 20, 2013 10:54pm

You name Farhat, Akmal and Shoaib with Misbah and say, they don't feliver in crunch times. I am astonished that you say that while including Misbah in the list. Secondly, would you be kind enough to name that talent which stands ready to replace, Afridi, Rzzaq, Shoaib and Akmal. SUre they are useless but I don't see any new allrounder able to replace the above. Only name coming to mind is Hammad Azzam but no one cares that Hammad has failed even in the low graded first class of ours.

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Murtaza Jamal

Jun 21, 2013 12:27am

Bokhari sahab, your last two paragraphs points out the root problem. The preceding paragraphs with all due respect are meaningless. It's not a person problem, but a system problem.

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Hassan

Jun 21, 2013 07:30am

I think politics needs to go out of the game at all levels. PCB chairman is a political appointee, our selectors on and so forth. Our batting line up is just woeful, and to me most of the batsmen in our lineup are a result of favor and corruption for example Imran Farhat and people like him, doesnt have a right to represent Pakistan. And that doesnt mean that we should bring in Afridi etc. Afridi is not a good example to youngsters going to be batters for us. Pakistan has immense talent when it comes to cricket and we need honest selectors to go around the country and pick the talent. Better the domestic competition by playing more 5 day games rather then one day or T20. Felt so ashamed at how Pakistan played in this champions trophy that I just can put words to describe it.

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