Ramiz Raja lashes out at Pakistan team's performance ahead of T20 World Cup

Former Pakistan cricketer Ramiz Raja has expressed his concerns about Pakistan's cricket team's current strategies as they prepare for the T20 World Cup 2024 scheduled to take place in the USA and West Indies next month. 

While speaking on his YouTube channel, Raja emphasized the need for a more balanced approach rather than an overemphasis on strike rates.

“First of all, get out of the experimental mode. Go with the proper combination and for God’s sake, please come out of the strike rate phobia because Pakistan doesn’t have players of that standard. We will ruin everything by trying to form a team based on strike rate,” Raja said.

The former PCB chairman also highlighted several issues within the team, including the frequent changes in the opening combination, undefined roles in the middle order, and the inclusion of multiple all-rounders and wicketkeepers. 

He also pointed out the lack of stability in the fast bowling lineup and the ineffective performance of Pakistan's spinners.

“You have destroyed this team by changing the opening combination. There is no role defined in the middle order. All-rounders are included in the middle order and two wicketkeepers are playing, fast bowlers keep changing, and Pakistan's spinners don’t spin the ball. There is no confidence,” he concluded.

It is worth noting that the Men in Green recently lost the four-match T20I series against England. While the first and third matches were completely washed out due to rain, the home side dominated the second and fourth matches, securing a 2-0 series victory.

The Pakistan squad is now focused on their upcoming World Cup campaign, with their opening match against the USA scheduled for Thursday, June 6, in Dallas, followed by matches against India on June 9 and Canada on June 12 in New York. Their final league match against Ireland is slated for June 16 in Florida.

Pakistan Squad for T20 World Cup 2024:

Babar Azam (C), Saim Ayub, Mohammad Rizwan, Azam Khan, Shadab Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Usman Khan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Abrar Ahmed, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Amir, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf.

Pakistan’s schedule of matches:

• 6 June – vs USA, Grand Prairie Cricket Stadium, Dallas
• 9 June – vs India, Nassau County International Cricket Stadium, New York
• 11 June – vs Canada, Nassau County International Cricket Stadium, New York
• 16 June – vs Ireland, Central Broward Park & Broward County Stadium, Lauderhill, Florida