Pakistan lost to India by six runs, teetering on the verge of elimination from the T20 World Cup 2024, having lost both their games so far.
In New York, legendary Pakistan fast bowler Wasim Akram minced no words for the Men in Green after the Babar Azam-led side’s narrow defeat to India. Chasing India’s 119 all out, Pakistan seemed in control, needing 48 runs in as many balls with eight wickets in hand. However, incisive spells from Jasprit Bumrah (3/14) and Hardik Pandya (2/24) saw Pakistan collapse to 113/7.
Wasim Akram, part of the T20 World Cup 2024 commentary panel, demanded a complete overhaul of the Pakistan team
. He was particularly critical of Mohammad Rizwan, Iftikhar Ahmed, and Fakhar Zaman for their lack of game awareness.
“They have been playing cricket for 10 years, and I can’t teach them. Rizwan has no game awareness. He should have known that Bumrah was given the ball to take wickets and that the wise thing would have been to play his deliveries cautiously. But Rizwan went for a big shot and lost his wicket,”
Akram said.
“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 tell about the game awareness to Fakhar Zaman. 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,”
added the 1992 World Cup winner. Akram also hinted at a rift between Babar Azam and Shaheen Shah Afridi, suggesting that they aren’t on talking terms after Afridi was replaced as white-ball captain by Babar.
“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,”
he added.