Former Pakistan cricketers Sikander Bakht and Moin Khan hinted at rift within the national team on Sunday, while talking to Geo News.
Bakht said that the discord between the players is a dangerous sign for the Pakistan team.
“The things which have been reported are extremely dangerous and this is something I have seen multiple times in my life. The arguments between the captain and players is not a good sign,” said Bakht.
“Previously, they were all united but it is now bowlers vs Babar Azam. He criticised the bowlers which led to argument with two of Pakistan’s pacers.
“There are some people who must have told one of the players that you have won the PSL which is why you should be the next captain in order to create a rift in the team.”
Meanwhile, Khan recalled the decision to remove Sarfaraz Ahmed from captaincy in 2019.
“Previously, there is another example, when captaincy was changed during the time of Sarfaraz Ahmed, he was the number one captain who had kept Pakistan at the top for around one and a half years. But there was a conspiracy against him and he ousted from the team,” said Khan.
It must be noted that Pakistan were knocked out of the ongoing Asia Cup 2023 after back-to-back losses against India and Sri Lanka in the Super 4 stage of the tournament.
Pakistan’s next assignment is the ICC World Cup 2023 in India, which begins next month.
Here is Pakistan's schedule for the ICC World Cup 2023:
October 6 - vs Netherlands in Hyderabad
October 10 - vs Sri Lanka in Hyderabad
October 14 - vs India in Ahmedabad
October 20 - vs Australia in Bengaluru
October 23 - vs Afghanistan in Chennai
October 27 - vs South Africa in Chennai
October 31 - vs Bangladesh in Kolkata
November 4 - vs New Zealand Bengaluru (Day match)
November 11 - vs England in Kolkata
The day matches which will start at 10:00am Pakistan Standard Time (PST) while all other matches will be day-night fixtures starting at 01:30pm (PST).
If Pakistan qualify for the semi-finals, they will play in Kolkata.
If India qualify for the semi-finals, they will play in Mumbai unless playing against Pakistan, in which case they will play in Kolkata.
- Babar Azam
