Pakistan’s former cricketer-turned-commentator, Ramiz Raja, in a YouTube video on Friday, claimed that the Men in Green looked set to get rid of its batting woes due to the emergence of talented young batsmen in this year’s Pakistan Super League (PSL) season five.
The 57-year-old predicted a bright future for Pakistan in terms of the batting and fast-bowling departments.
“This is the first time I saw some very good batsmen in the PSL who had a good attitude. There is a lot of room for improvement but I see a bright future in that department. We have a great talent pool of fast-bowlers. We saw five or six really fast young bowlers in the PSL. We need to identify the talent,” said Raja.
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Raja stated many reasons for the eventual downfall of Pakistan cricket and claimed that confusion in strategies was the biggest hurdle towards development.
“The talent dried up. The lockdown of cricket has been going on for the last 10 years or so. We saw the repercussions of that time as well. Our strategy was all over the place too. I still think that there is no clear cut strategy of what needs to be done,” he said.
“They don’t know what needs to be done with the senior players or the junior players. You sometimes have to take difficult decisions in order to move forward which is not happening. This creates confusion. In order to fix it you have to get rid of that confusion,” the former opener added.
Raja also emphasised that old players were not suitable to lead the Pakistan side towards betterment while prompting the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to make difficult decisions.
“We are also stuck with old players and think they will save us. I can’t fathom how we can win the T20 World Cup with old players. The past tells us that this can’t happen,” he said.
Raja stated that the first-class system is the most vital aspect of any cricketing nation and no development can take place without its improvement.
“Until your first class system is improved the PSL can never be effective no matter how engaging it becomes. You cannot create superstars with T20 cricket. They need the temperament and the technique to thrive. Our first class structure is still at an experimental stage,” he concluded.