KARACHI, Sept 23: Pakistan cricket team's demoralizing defeat at the hands of the not too hot West Indies in Wednesday's ICC Champions Trophy semifinal has drawn mixed reaction from former greats of Pakistan cricket.

Talking to Dawn on Thursday, some of them held Bob Woolmer, the high-profile foreign coach, responsible for the crushing seven-wicket loss. Hanif Mohammad blamed the team management for batting first in conditions conducive for swing and seam bowling.

"The winning of toss is always crucial at this time of the year in England. On a scale of 10, nine times teams would have opted to field first," the legend remarked. "In one-day cricket, the character of a pitch seldom changes during the course of 100 overs. And it is a lame excuse to say that the pitch would have deteriorated in the second half of the match," he said, while referring to Inzamamul Haq's post-match comments. "Why then the team allowed itself to succumb under pressure? Simply, there was no game plan as such," he added.

Intikhab Alam, the former captain and coach, asked who is dictating the terms. "I just want to know who is calling the shots at the moment, is it the captain or the over-rated coach Bob Woolmer? Bob had spent over 30 years in that country and with that much experience, he should have known the conditions better than anyone else," he said from Lahore.

"And what was the wisdom of inducting Salman Butt in place of Imran Farhat for former's debut match?" He termed Inzamam's decision as mind boggling. "Against West Indies, who despite their low-ranking are good chasers, it was very surprising to see Pakistan making first use of a pitch conducive to seam bowling.

Another legend Javed Miandad who was replaced by Woolmer stated the team needed collective efforts to rise again. "After the World Cup 2003, there was a gradual progress in all departments with a few new faces in the squad when we initiated the rebuilding phase. But sadly, the batting graph is going down," the former coach noted. "I couldn't find any stability in the batting area during the Asia Cup in Sri Lanka, the tri-series in Holland and now the Champions Trophy.

"What we need is long-term planning. There is no point in saying that we are targeting the Australian series to achieve our goals. Self-improvement is needed on all fronts. I have always said that there is no harm when a team fights all the way even in defeat."

Miandad questioned PCB's approach towards the latest debacle and demanded a probe. "Just tell me is there anyone in the cricket board who is willing to hold the team and its management accountable?"

Zaheer Abbas said Inzamam's observation that the Rose Bowl pitch would help spinners in the second session proved wrong in the end. "Since Pakistan were fielding four pace bowlers, Inzamam's justification lacks logic. The two spinners (Shahid Afridi and Shoaib Malik) are better known as batsmen.

"It was a case of rank bad batting and none of the batsmen applied themselves." Rashid Latif, Inzamam's predecessor as Pakistan captain, echoed Zaheer's words.

"Don't blame the pitch. The batsmen were at fault since they did not apply themselves. I am saying this on behalf of our people and supporters that the team let the country down with its miserable performance."

Mohsin Khan, another ex-batsman and junior team coach, however, defended the decision to bat first. "Against an average bowling side, Pakistan did the right thing in batting first. The platform was there for a fighting score when they been 65 for one and then 100 for three.

"Two stupid run outs and some injudicious shot selection led to the horrible collapse. Had the guys shown the right kind of application and dedication, the story might have been totally different."

Salahuddin Ahmed was critical of Woolmer's appointment as Pakistan coach in the first place. "What did the South Africans achieve under his five-year tenure? Steve Waugh (the former Australian captain) described them as chokers in crunch games," the former chief selector told Dawn from London.

"Now the coach wants Pakistan to be known as a team of jokers. I have no hesitation in saying that he is being over-rated by the PCB. Don't be surprise if he (Woolmer) takes Pakistan cricket for a ride. Already the team is dancing to his tunes with several players singing high praise for the coach."

Salahuddin also blamed the present PCB chief Shaharyar M.Khan for team's third successive loss in tournaments starting from Asia Cup, Tri-nation in Amsterdam and now the Champions Trophy. "Shaharyar M. Khan is the weakest PCB chief and the way the the game's ruling body is being managed God help Pakistan cricket" he added.