With Rohit Sharma’s ‘Men in Blue’ defeated Mohammed Rizwan’s ‘Men in Green’ by six wickets during the Group A match of the high-adrenaline filled India vs Pakistan match at the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 in Dubai, former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar didn’t mince his words and slammed the Pakistan batters for not living up to expectations.
The defeat against India in CT 2025 put the Pakistan team under the scanner for their below-par performances in the ICC events in the past few years.
Not only, Babar Azam, even Mohammad Rizwan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, and others failed to impress during the mega clash. After New Zealand defeated Bangladesh by 5 wickets on Monday in the Group A match, Pakistan have been knocked out of the tournament.
As Babar, Rizwan and Khushdil were tagged as talented players over the years who may take Pakistan cricket forward. However, Akhtar slammed the players with the ‘talent’ tag associated with them.
“Kaunsa talent? Kaunsa talent hai? Kis cheez ka? (Which talent, what kind of talent?)” Akhtar said on Career TV‘s YouTube channel.
Akhtar even slammed the Pakistan batsmen and said they are not comparable to Indian superstars like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Shreyas Iyer.
“Would you rate Babar to Virat Kohli? Iyer to Khushdil Shah? Rohit Sharma to Fakhar Zaman? Our Rizwan, which one is the talent? Talents are displayed. It’s not about talking, you have to deliver,” he added.
In the India Vs Pakistan blockbuster match, Babar – who often gets compared to Kohli by some Pakistan fans – scored only 23 runs from 26 balls.
Adding more, Akhtar asserted that it’s crucial for the players to showcase their talent on the big stage to become match-winners for their side.
“No one becomes a star in the dark, you have to take wickets and score runs. I have been hearing there is talent for the last 10 years, if there was talent, it would’ve been on display,” he added.
Pakistan coach, support staff to be sacked?
According to a report by PTI, which quoted a cricket Board source, the Pakistan team hard and its support staff led by former fast bowler Aaqib Javed is set to be overhauled.
The report added that Aaqib will be relieved of his duties as interim head coach after the Champions Trophy.
“Obviously there is backlash over the team’s performance in the CT. The Board hasn’t decided as yet on whether the team will have separate head coaches (for red and white ball teams) but one thing is certain the current support staff will be overhauled now after the poor show in the Champions Trophy,” the source told PTI.
“But the way the Board has been changing coaches and selectors since last year, it will be a challenge to find other candidates for these positions,” he said.
Adding more, the source claimed once Pakistan ends its campaign in the CT, PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi will also be conferring with the Board of Governors on whether to retain the national selection committee or not.
