Former Pakistan cricketers slam team’s lack of planning after loss against West Indies

Sikandar Bakht and Rashid Latif, two former Pakistan cricket legends, have shared their insights following Pakistan's defeat to the West Indies on home ground after 34 years. 

The West Indies defeated Pakistan by 120 runs in the Multan Test, with Pakistan being all out for just 133 runs in their second innings while chasing a target of 254. The match, initially set for five days, concluded in just two and a half days, with ten Pakistani players being dismissed twice. No Pakistani batsman managed to score a half-century, and Rizwan’s 49 in the first innings was the highest score in the match.

Sikandar Bakht criticized Pakistan's reliance on spin bowlers during the series, asking whether it was the right decision for the team to play with only spinners. 

"No team can win by playing with just one approach; variation is necessary," Sikandar emphasized. 

He added, "A team of 11 players should have fast bowlers, spinners, and all-rounders. You beat England this way, but they were unprepared. Now, every team that comes to Pakistan will be prepared for the spinning attack. This way of playing is not the correct approach; you need variation. Fast bowlers should have been included in the middle."

Sikandar also expressed confusion over Shan Masood's comments, saying, "I don't understand why Shan Masood said, 'We were not ready for this kind of conditions.' What does that even mean? It seems he himself was not ready to play in these conditions. He’s admitting it himself."

Rashid Latif also weighed in on the team's performance, pointing out that Pakistan’s batting issues are the main cause of their struggles. 

"We won three out of four matches, but nobody talks about the losses, including 12 Test matches where Shan captained and lost nine, including two against Bangladesh," Rashid said. He also highlighted that no Pakistani batsman could make 50 runs in both innings. 

Rashid further criticized the lack of preparation and the team's failure to learn from previous losses.

"Winning three matches out of four is not something to boast about. Our openers aren't scoring, our middle order isn't performing," he said. "Many lessons should have been learned from the Bangladesh match. We need long-term planning and must accept that we are now a bottom-ranked team," he added. 
 
Both Sikandar and Rashid agreed that Pakistan’s cricket management needs significant improvement. 

"The real issues are clear: poor planning, too many changes, and clueless selection committees," Rashid stated. 

He noted that players like Asad Shafiq and Azhar Ali still need time to adjust to the system. Sikandar added that fast bowlers should have been included in the squad and also suggested that players like Sajid Khan could be useful in ODIs, but are being overlooked.

On the topic of domestic cricket, both Bakht and Latif expressed concerns about top players like Babar Azam not playing domestic matches. 

"Players like Babar Azam have low averages in home matches, and that's concerning," Sikandar pointed out. Rashid agreed, stating that even in India, players like Virat Kohli are being criticized for not playing enough domestic cricket.