Disappointed with Pakistan’s poor performance in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024, legendary pacer Wasim Akram has called for the sacking of the entire team.
The Babar Azam-led Pakistan team lost to archrivals India by six runs, marking their second defeat in the tournament.
“Pakistani players think that if they don’t perform well, the coaches will be sacked, and nothing will happen to them. It is time to keep the coaches and change the entire team,” Akram said in an interview.
The former captain also criticized the batters for failing to read the conditions and losing wickets due to unnecessary shots.
He particularly castigated Iftikhar Ahmed and Mohammad Rizwan for lacking the intent to win the match for Pakistan.
“Iftikhar Ahmed knows one shot on the leg side. He has been a part of the team for years but doesn’t know how to bat. I can’t go and teach game awareness to Fakhar Zaman,” Akram said.
According to Akram, Rizwan should have played Jasprit Bumrah’s over with caution, as Bumrah was brought back to take a wicket for his team.
“They have been playing cricket for 10 years, and I can’t teach them. Rizwan has no game awareness,” he said.
Regarding skipper Babar Azam and pacer Shaheen Afridi, Akram claimed that the two players are not on speaking terms since Afridi was sacked as captain and replaced by Azam.
While he did not mention the two players directly, Akram was apparently taking a jibe at them.
“There are players who don’t want to talk to each other. This is international cricket, and you play for your country. Make these players sit at home,” Akram said.
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Pakistan lost a must-win game to India in a low-scoring thriller in New York a day earlier.
The Men in Green bowled out India for 119 in 19 overs, with Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf taking three wickets each.
However, the Pakistan batters failed to achieve the target of 120, ending their innings at 113 for seven in their 20 overs.
With the defeat against India, Pakistan has now lost both matches they have played in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024.
