Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt has slammed Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Ramiz Raja for 'blatant lies' and 'media gimmicks' during his recent press conference.
While speaking on his YouTube channel, Salman Butt claimed that PCB is currently being operated based on Ramiz Raja's obsessions and elaborated how 'blatant lies' were told in Ramiz Raja's presser.
"Whenever you become a head of any department, does the organisation start catering to your obsessions and what you want, or should it be creating policies which remain intact and are applied irrespective of whether you are in power or not?" Salman pointed out.
Salman angrily reiterated his statement and said, "Why should anyone follow your obsessions? Where is the policy?"
Butt harshly broke down Ramiz Raja's statement from the press conference regarding First-Class cricketers earning up to Rs. 60 lac on annual basis.
"There were two main reasons for increasing the salaries of the domestic players. One was to provide them with a sustainable tier-2 career. Now, a First Class cricketer is making 50 to 60 lac rupees, this was unheard of before," said Ramiz Raja during his press conference.
Salman Butt contradicted Ramiz's statement and called them 'blatant lies' and added that these figures are only used as media gimmicks because they are not based on reality.
"Just take the example of A+ category players and leave the rest for a minute. Their one-year contract has 2.5 lac rupees per month. That amounts to 30 lac per year. There is no match which pays 1 lac rupees; some pay 60 thousand, others 70," Salman explained.
Salman further added how it is impossible for all players to earn 60 lac rupees, as quoted by Ramiz, and explained the finance behind it.
"If a player plays all matches of all three formats, this means 10 First-Class matches, 10 one-days, and 10 Test matches. In addition to that, if he plays the semifinals and finals as well then these amount to 33-34 matches. Even then the player won't earn up to 60 lac," Salman further elaborated.
"Not all of those A+ category players play all three formats and it is not necessary that their teams always reach finals, only one or two might. To base your statements on such rarity is similar to how businesses trap customers by offering gimmick discounts," Salman concluded.
It is worth adding that Ramiz Raja has been an advocate for not allowing cricketers to play again who have disgraced Pakistan's name. Although Butt was already finding it difficult to break into the team and with Ramiz's arrival as PCB chairman, it has made it even more difficult for the likes of Salman Butt, Mohammad Amir, and Sharjeel Khan to make a comeback. This is one of the reasons why Salman Butt and Mohammad Amir have remained extra critical of Ramiz Raja and his progress as the PCB chairman.