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Pakistan Cricket Crisis Linked to 2021 India Win, Says Former Cricketer
Confirmed
In Short: Former Pakistan cricketer Mohammad Yousuf attributes the team's current struggles to their unexpected 2021 victory over India.
Former Pakistan cricketer Mohammad Yousuf has blamed the team's current woes on their unexpected 10-wicket victory over India in the 2021 T20 World Cup. According to Yousuf, the win led to a sense of complacency among players, causing them to lose focus and perform poorly in subsequent matches.
The former cricketer elaborated, 'That match which we won against India in 2021, that damaged us a lot. Because after that victory, players started to think that they had achieved something big. They couldn’t understand what they had to do next. When you are performing well, you should stay humble. If you behave with your collar raised, and get disrespectful, problems will arrive. And a lot of them have arrived in Pakistan cricket.
Yousuf also criticized the lack of leadership and responsibility among players, stating, 'Everyone in the team was trying to become the captain of the Pakistan team. The consequences are still hurting Pakistan cricket. Look at all the cricket Pakistan has played in the last four-five years, from ODI World Cups, T20 World Cups to Asia Cups and Champions Trophy. There has been terrible cricket. The PCB has been supporting you throughout. So many coaches have come and gone, so many things have changed just to try and help the Pakistan team. But no player has stood up and taken responsibility. Eventually, PCB had to take a step that it did. I back what PCB did.
Following the recent poor performances, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) responded by shipping back seven players from the squad and replacing them with seven others, including five uncapped players. The team has had a wretched few years in elite cricket, failing to qualify for the knock-out stage of an ICC event since 2023.
What's confirmed
- ALSO READ | ‘Nothing’s changed’: Hayden on chaos in Pakistan cricket Pakistan cricket recently hit its nadir when they lost the second Test to England by Lord’s by 194 runs after a loss at Headingley by an innings and 103 runs.
What's still developing
- In their place, Saim Ayub and Abdullah Fazal, who have played for Pakistan before, and Arafat Minhas, Mohammed Imran Jr, Said Baig, Mohammad Imran and Razaullah were called up.
- He said that Pakistan are ninth in the World Test Championship standings and their reputation is getting ruined, so the board has to take some steps.
- Notably, Pakistan famously won that game by 10 wickets - their first and only win over India in a World Cup match across formats.
- In May this year, Pakistan were swept 2-0 by Bangladesh, which was their second 0-2 defeat to the Asian nation after the series at home in 2024.