KARACHI, Dec 20: Cricket legend Imran Khan on Monday slammed Pakistan's humiliating 491-run first Test loss to Australia, pointing a finger at inept batsmen produced by a faulty cricket system.
"It's deplorable to see Pakistan going down like that," Imran, a celebrated all rounder and the country's most successful captain yet, said. "Until and unless we correct our faulty system - and that I have been saying for the last 25 years - our batsmen will not be technically and temperamentally equipped to face a quality bowling side like Australia," said the 52-year old, now a politician.
Australia posted the fourth highest victory margin in Test history after Pakistan crumbled on the penultimate day for a paltry 72 in their second innings at Perth on Sunday.
"We will continue to blame coaches and captains for each defeat and sack them, but the real remedy is to develop batsmen technically by overhauling our faulty system," said Imran, who played 82 Tests and 176 one-day games for Pakistan between 1971 and 1992.
"Either correct it by improving the system or send the batsmen to play in county cricket. "I think the coach can make a marginal difference and it's the captain who makes the team fight, but how can he make a team fight whose base is weak?"
IMRAN SAID: "Batting has always been Pakistan's bane on tours of Australia and our batsmen thrive against lack of quality bowling but when they come up against world class bowling of Australia they are exposed."
Australia showed the stuff of champions on day one when they were caught napping at 78-5, Imran added. "The hallmark of a champion team is that they hung in during bad times and when they got an opportunity showed the killer instinct. Pakistan should have been a pack of wolves once they caught Australia, but they weren't," he said.
Another former captain, chief of selectors Wasim Bari, said the manner in which the team lost was disappointing. "This team is a professional team comprised of talented players who are capable of fighting back, but the manner in which they lost was disappointing," he said. -AFP
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