Ramiz Raja highlights issues ailing Pakistan cricket during MCC meeting at Lord’s

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Ramiz Raja believes that for Pakistani cricket to thrive, there needs to be a shift in strategy and a focus on reviving matches against India.

While speaking at World Cricket Connects, an event at Lord’s hosted by the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), Raja highlighted the importance of India-Pakistan games. He argued that to gain international recognition, Pakistan must be competitive against India.

 “When I was the chairman, I used to tell the team all the time, until or unless you beat India or be competitive against them, the world will not recognise you. That is the landmark,” Raja said.

"They did reasonably well for about a year, year and a half. Then the general turbulence that the country is going through is being reflected in the performance of the team. You want to be in the bubble but at times, the players are just not capable of creating that bubble. We’ve got to start from scratch and make it happen again,” he added.

Raja stressed the importance of starting anew and suggested that both Indian and Pakistani former cricketers should work together to facilitate these high-profile matches, setting aside political differences for the good of the sport.

“Ex-cricketers need to understand the value of an India-Pakistan contest. Fans should not be missing this spectacle.

“It’s our job to say that let’s put politics to one side and play cricket because it will benefit the world. We need a stronger, positive vibe surrounding the issue. The onus is on Indian ex-cricketers and Pakistani ex-cricketers to make it happen.”

Raja also proposed innovative scheduling to enhance the importance of Test cricket, which he feels is currently undervalued in Asia. He suggested fewer but more significant Test series and incorporating limited-overs matches to complement them.

“You have got to think outside the box. If I were a Pakistan administrator, I would look at triangulars or having regular Test cricket schedule, because right now what is happening is that Test cricket in Pakistan is at best a filler.

“You should build a Test series and put in a filler in the shape of three 50-over matches or three T20s. What is happening now in most of Asia is you have five T20s and one Test match, or five ODIs and no Test matches.”

“Scheduling has a lot to do with why Test cricket is being dealt a severe blow in our part of the world. I would look at a proper Test schedule. Play less, maybe, but play proper Test series so it’s given significance,” he added.

Despite the prolonged absence of bilateral series with India, he mentioned that the PSL has helped maintain the sport’s financial stability in Pakistan, pushing the team to achieve success through victories.

“We have not had a bilateral series against India for the last 15-20 years and we have survived. We make decent money from PSL (Pakistan Super League),” he said.

“It actually made us stronger because we had to look inwards and get the local sponsorship and the local stakeholders interested in our model. We told the team we do not have a lot of resources so the only way you can become a hit is by winning,” he added.