Abdul Razzaq unhappy with Sarfaraz Ahmed’s decisions in the game versus India

Nobody would have expected a clash as volatile as India vs Pakistan to be as one-sided as it was. India were the favourites throughout the game, with Pakistan bowlers and batsmen failing against each of the Indian departments. Pakistan’s fielding was also extremely shoddy. They kept misfielding and dropping catches, which the Indian batsmen kept capitalising on, especially Yuvraj Singh.

Their below-par performance has earned them heavy criticism from former Pakistan cricketers. Recently retired all-rounder Abdul Razzaq is one of them. Razzaq made peace with captain Sarfraz Ahmed’s decision to bowl first but the logic of choosing left-arm spinner Imad Wasim to share the new ball with pacer Mohammad Amir went above his head. He thought that if Wahab Riaz or Hassan Ali had to share the new ball with Amir, the results would have been positive.

“Sarfraz might have taken the decision to bowl first due to the overcast conditions,” Razzaq told The Express Tribune. “Inviting your opponent to bat first after winning the toss, though a rare decision, could have worked had the right combination of bowlers been used. But had it been Hassan Ali or Wahab Riaz sharing the new ball with Amir, things could have been much different,” he said.

The captain alone should decide the playing XI 

Razzaq also opined that the team management should not interfere in the selection of the playing XI, and Sarfaraz alone should have the responsibility to do that. He feels that too much interference from the management hampers a captain’s thought process and ideas.

Despite his decision backfiring big time, Razzaq feels Sarfraz alone should be in charge of picking his starting eleven. “Sarfraz should be given a free hand to lead and select his playing 11 per the team’s need; the interference of the management will not let the captain turn this into a good team,” he said.