Former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Ramiz Raja has expressed deep disappointment with the national team’s performance following their shocking defeat to Ireland in the opening match of a three-game T20I series.
With the T20 World Cup looming in June, Pakistan has been tirelessly searching for the right formula, experimenting with their squad in a bid to find success.
Despite glimpses of improvement, such as Saim Ayub’s brisk 45 in the previous series against New Zealand, Pakistan’s middle order continues to falter. Star players like Fakhar Zaman, Azam Khan, and Shadab Khan managed a mere 20 runs collectively in the recent match against Ireland.
Once a dominant force in T20 cricket, Pakistan’s fortunes have plummeted, reflected by their current seventh position in the ICC T20 rankings. Ramiz Raja believes this ranking accurately mirrors the team’s current predicament.
Ramiz criticized the frequent changes in captaincy and squad composition, lamenting their adverse effects on team cohesion and performance.
“How can we expect to win the World Cup with such instability? Our opening pair remains unsettled, key batsmen fail to capitalize, and the middle order lacks consistency. In this state, reaching the semi-finals seems like a distant dream,” remarked Ramiz.
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He emphasized the need for Pakistan to emulate the consistency of teams like India and Australia, highlighting the glaring issues in their middle-order stability and leakage of runs by top players.
Despite managing a competitive total of 182/6 against Ireland, Pakistan’s bowling unit struggled to defend it, plagued by wayward deliveries and lapses in line and length.
As Pakistan prepares for the second T20I against Ireland, the pressure mounts on the team to rectify their flaws and salvage the series.
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