Former Pakistan cricketer Kamran Akmal has lashed out at the national team batters, skipper Shan Masood, and the team management following a disappointing 2-0 Test series defeat against Bangladesh in Rawalpindi.
In an exclusive interview with Cricket Pakistan, Akmal expressed his frustration over the team's lackluster performance, particularly singling out young batters Saim Ayub and Abdullah Shafique for their failures in the second Test.
Despite Saim scoring a fifty in the first innings of the second Test, Akmal was critical of his dismissal, where he was stumped out in a rather unusual manner.
"These guys are being supported way too much. Honestly, if I were in charge, I swear I wouldn't let Saim come near the team for the next two years after getting out like he did in the first innings of the second Test, especially after making 50 runs," Akmal stated bluntly.
He also questioned Abdullah Shafique's ability to deliver as a specialist opener, emphasizing the need for a more aggressive approach in the modern game.
"Abdullah Shafique, as you can see, is a specialist opener. Whether it's the first ball or not, cricket has become so fast-paced that runs are expected right from the start. You can see that our approach is totally different; we’re not playing the cricket of the '90s or '80s. Just killing time and seeing off the ball won’t get you runs. If a player like Abdullah Shafique isn’t scoring runs against such teams, then I think it’s a worrying sign, both for Abdullah and for Pakistan," he said.
The wicketkeeper batter went on to praise the Bangladesh pacers, particularly Nahid Rana and Taskin Ahmed, for their exceptional bowling performance throughout the series. He highlighted the difficulties Pakistani batters faced against genuine pace, noting their struggles against bowlers clocking speeds of 140 kph and above.
"You can look at my statements before the Test series started when it was being said that there would be grassy pitches with bounce. I had mentioned that with the way Bangladesh's bowling has been performing for the past year and a half, and the pacers they have now, it would be a tough time for Pakistani batters to play. It would be a test for them to see if they can score runs or not. And we saw that happen," he said.
"Our batters are comfortable against pacers bowling at 130-140 kph, but when they face a pace of 140 kph or more, and they see that on the scoreboard during the match, their legs start to give way. This was evident in how Nahid Rana and Taskin Ahmed bowled with pace. Saud Shakeel scored a century, but there should have been another century after that. You should also look at Babar and see how he got out, and check how Rizwan got out," he added.
The 42-year-old also raised concerns about the lack of commitment from Pakistani players to domestic cricket, suggesting that this is contributing to their inconsistent performances on the international stage.
"This is a concern for Pakistan's cricket because the issue is that during their free time, 80% of our players don't participate in four-day cricket, nor do they like to watch it. When your form dips, the first thing you do is go back to club cricket to regain your form. You go through the process to get your form back, but here, when it comes to domestic cricket, players get NOCs for foreign leagues," he explained.
In addition to criticizing the batters, Akmal also took aim at the team management and captain for their handling of the spin department. He accused them of sidelining talented spinners and failing to develop a solid spin attack.
"Look, the reason spinners have become less common is because they haven't been given the chance. You haven't played them; those who did manage to establish themselves have been sidelined, like Yasir Shah, and then there's Nouman Ali. Where has Nouman Ali gone? Didn’t he take wickets? Did he get punished? He had appendicitis in Australia, got operated on, and was then sidelined. What was Usman Qadir's fault? What was Sajid Khan's fault? What was Bilal Asif's fault? All of them have taken five-wicket hauls and yet are out of the team," Akmal lamented.
"The team management and captain lack the patience to develop spinners. Spinners take long overs to get wickets. Mystery spinners have come before; just look at Ajantha Mendis—early on, batters couldn’t figure out how to play him, but once they worked on it, they managed a little. The same thing was bound to happen with Abrar, who took early wickets, but after that, you kept him with the team for a year, just traveling without giving him a game," he added.
Akmal's critique didn't stop there, as he also questioned the strategy of including spinners in squads without actually playing them in crucial matches.
"If you’ve included him in the ODI team, then play him. If he’s in the T20I squad, then play him. You did the same thing in the World Cup. I don’t know what the approach was—whether you wanted to develop spinners or not. You didn't let anyone come through because of Shadab. How can you expect new spinners to emerge if you don't give them timely opportunities? You can see in the Test match, you've benched your main bowlers and are playing with an inexperienced bowling attack. Is this a Test match or club cricket?" Akmal concluded.