DHAKA: Former Pakistan cricketers on Monday slammed the team’s first ever series loss to Bangladesh, with former captain Javed Miandad terming it the “lowest point” in Pakistan’s cricketing history.
Bangladesh thumped Pakistan by seven wickets in the second one-day international in Dhaka on Sunday (April 19) and secured fourth series win over a full-member nation after victories against Zimbabwe, the West Indies and New Zealand.
“Losing to Bangladesh is the lowest point but if we do not take big measures our cricket will decline further,” batting legend Miandad said, reports dailytimes.
Miandad also praised Bangladesh cricketers saying, “Bangladesh are not the same Bangladesh they used to be and I think they can now upset any team because they are getting better and better with each day.”
He also remembered his 2002 coaching stint with the Tigers.
Wicket-keeping great Wasim Bari deplored a lack of planning ahead of the series. “There is no strategy in the Pakistan team, no planning and that is why they were exposed,” Bari said.
He added, “Bangladesh have kept their World Cup momentum very well while we have gone down.”
Bangladesh ousted higher-ranked England to enter quarter-finals in the World Cup held in Australia and New Zealand in February-March this year.
Another former skipper of Pakistan Rashid Latif feared more such results in the future. “We have played around 90 players in the last five years and worse still we never allowed batsmen to settle on one position. We had 19 different opening pairs and there were a lot of changes in the bowling pairs as well and that’s why our team are not settled.”
Meanwhile, recently retired skipper of Pakistan Misbah-ul-Haq defended the poor performance of Pakistan cricketers in the opening two One-Day Internationals against Bangladesh.
“This is young team and needed more time to improve under a new captain Azhar Ali,” he said on Monday, reports dailytimes.
Bangladesh beat Pakistan in the first ODI by 79-run and by seven wickets in the second One-Day and registered their first series win over their rivals in two decades.
Bangladesh opener Tamim Iqbal hit back to back dazzling hundreds in the series flaying Pakistani bowling lineup comprising names like Wahab Riaz, Junaid Khan, Saeed Ajmal.
BDST: 1002 HRS, APR 21, 2015
SR/AKA
