The 57-year-old called the squad a mixed bag that had talented inclusions such as batsmen Haider Ali and Khushdil Shah
13 June, 2020
PHOTO: AFP
Pakistan’s former cricketer-turned-commentator Ramiz Raja, in a YouTube video, criticised chief selector-cum-head coach Misbahul Haq for relying on old faces such as veteran all-rounders Shoaib Malik and Mohammad Hafeez after the squad for the tour of England was announced on Friday.
The 57-year-old called the squad a mixed bag that had talented inclusions such as batsmen Haider Ali and Khushdil Shah.
“Pakistan has announced their squad for the England tour which is a mixed bag of selection. I would give Misbah 5 out of 10 for this selection. Selecting the likes of Haider Ali and Khushdil Shah was a good move but the mindset is wrong that has impacted selection as well. There are many old faces and Misbah does not seem to be ready to move on in T20 cricket without them. This shows his mindset which is now, unfortunately, being transferred to the young captain. He has been told that you cannot win the T20 World Cup without Shoaib Malik and Mohammad Hafeez,” Raja said.
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The former cricketer claimed that experience alone would not help the Men in Green clinch the T20 World Cup.
“Shoaib Malik, in the last 10 years, has played 25 matches in ICC events without scoring a fifty. Mohammad Hafeez was a good all-round cricketer but his form is not the same in the international arena. If you want proof, you should go see his performance against New Zealand in the World Cup. Both are now weak fielders. But somehow, Misbah is convinced that experience can win you the T20 World Cup,” he said.
“If those experienced players were world-class it would be a different story, however, experience in T20 cricket has been overtaken by many different factors such as attitude, fielding, energy, reflexes, and if your reflexes are slow you cannot hit the big ones. How can someone win matches in this way?” he added.
