The situation of the Pakistan cricket team is getting worse with the time. Under Babar Azam’s leadership, they are already out of the ongoing Men’s T20 World Cup 2024, in the West Indies and the United States of America. The former team director Mohammad Hafeez made a shocking statement about their dressing room, to which Salman Butt, the former team captain reacted.
The Pakistan team had a very struggling time in the United States, losing their very first game against the United States in a heart-breaking super-over contest, while they fell short by six runs, against arch-rivals India. Their victory over Canada and Ireland wasn’t enough to qualify for the second stage of the competition.
Now their former captain Mohammad Hafeez commented on the behavior of their dressing room, which Salman Butt has slammed, feeling that this news shouldn’t have come out before the outside world.
‘This is a question mark your leadership’- Salman Butt
Hafeez was the director of the side between November 2023 to February 2024. Under his time, Pakistan lost an away T20I series to New Zealand by a 1-4 margin, while they also were handed over a 3-0 series defeat against Australia in a Test series.
Also Read: ‘India Will Be Comfortable With Hardik Pandya Coming Back Into Form’- Anil Kumble
They also went on to finish the Asia Cup 2023, in a humiliating way before not being able to qualify for the semifinal of the last ODI World Cup 2023 in India.
During a podcast, the former Australia batter Adam Gilchrist and England captain Michael Vaughan recalled the time when some of their players in the dressing room were sleeping during a Test match in Australia.
‘You tell me, Gilly, if a player is sleeping in the dressing room and we are playing Test cricket. 4-5 players are sleeping in the dressing room, should I allow that as a team director? Hafeez expressed on the Grand Prairie Podcast.
He also went on to explain that he couldn’t tolerate the fact that some of their players were sleeping during a game, and not focusing on the auction going around. The former batter also spoke about how the fast bowlers could think of taking breaks, but that only at the end of the game.
The former Pakistan captain, Salman Butt slammed the team director of the team, for such comments, indicating that these things shouldn’t have come out of the dressing room.
‘I don’t know, I wasn’t with him. Maybe, he is right, but who have ensured that? It’s the same thing of complaining about your own house outside.’ The former Pakistan captain Salman Butter expressed during a show called ‘Cricket Baithak’. ‘You are complaining about your internal conflicts with the outside world. You are the team director, you selected players who would have never made it to the squad else. You can’t conduct fitness tests, what kind of incompetence is this?’
Also Read: ‘Suryakumar Yadav Isn’t Somebody Who Always Looks For Sixes’- Sanjay Manjrekar
He also pointed out that there was a time when Hafeez criticized Mohammad Amir, a veteran left-arm Pakistan pacer, to come out of retirement to feature in the T20 World Cup for the national team.
‘This is a question mark on your leadership. You couldn’t take Test on your juniors, and you are going to Adam Gilchrist’s show and complaining that no one listens to me.’ The former Pakistan captain Salman Butt commented in the show. ‘When someone else brings back Mohammad Amir then you have a problem but when you call him, that is okay. If you are the coach, bringing him back is justified, if not it’s wrong.’
‘What was you trying to say. Discuss it to yourself first. Until, someone fires one out of the job, no one leaves it by their own, and then you make these sort of complains. You should have said it there that no one listens to me. Give me more power and backing.’ Salman Butt concluded.
It will be interesting to see how the team changes its environment in the upcoming two-match Test series against Bangladesh at home.
