The former Pakistan opening batter, Kamran Akmal, has slammed the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for their decision to play the second of the two-match series at the National Stadium in Karachi behind closed doors due to the ongoing renovation work in the ground, keeping the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy 2025 in mind.
The series will begin on August 21 at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, as both the teams have locked in their last-minute preparation for both the games, which will be part of the ongoing third cycle of the World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25.
However, a few days back, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) decided to decide between playing the Karachi Test without any crowd, as their main aim is to bring changes to the stadium before the CT 2025, in February-March next year.
Kamran Akmal calls Pakistan Cricket ‘Joke’ for Karachi Test
The former wicket-keeper batter of the Pakistan team, Kamran Akmal, felt that the board could have shifted the second game to either Faisalabad or Multan stadium, both of which grounds carry good surfaces and attract healthy crowds during red-ball games.
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“The second Test will be played in Karachi. So, I think, you know, renovation work is going on in Karachi for the Champions Trophy. So, there will be a joke regarding Pakistan playing a Test match without the crowd.”The 42-year-old expressed in a video shared on his YouTube channel. “It’s not like we have only three stadiums; we have Faisalabad stadium. Then, we have got the Multan Stadium, you know which is a top-class ground, and crowds are quite active there too.”
He also narrated how this decision would make Pakistan Cricket ‘a joke’ internationally, as these things shouldn’t happen, according to him.
“So, you could have organized the second Test match on one of those grounds. Internationally, we will have to tolerate jokes about our cricket. So, these things shouldn’t happen. Now, let’s see what they thought before deciding on these venues.” Akmal stated.
The Lahore-born also addressed that these decisions have made Pakistan cricket a joke worldwide, as they had been taking these decisions on a lighter note. He questioned if it was known that the ground wouldn’t be prepared by the start of the test and why management hadn’t changed the schedule on an earlier basis.
“If they know from earlier times that these stadiums will be broken and built on a new structure, then why didn’t you take the decision based on these developments? You now will get to see how much our brand of cricket has gone down internationally.” The former wicket-keeper batter, Kamran Akmal, lashed out at the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
“It’s always been discussed lights and as a joke. Then, if you make these sorts of decisions, surely we will become a joke to international cricket. We need to keep a distance from these things and make sure we work on a professional basis. We need to be more active. I feel when the decision of hosting the Test in Karachi was taken, their ears and eyes were closed.” The veteran remarked in the same video.
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The future of Test cricket already looks to be bleak, these sorts of decisions will make it worse in the upcoming days.
“The chairman needs to ask the question of who was given the responsibility of deciding the venue. I understand the ground is ready, but without the crowd, who would love to see it? Test cricket has already gone away, and now, if we do these sorts of things, we will ourselves go away. But let’s see, what happens in the future.” Kamran Akmal concluded in the video.