Reports: Pakistan coach Misbah-ul-Haq unhappy with Sarfaraz Ahmed shying away from responsibilities

Following the 3-0 shock defeat at the hands of Sri Lanka, the alarm bells have well and truly rung in the Pakistan camp. Very few would’ve seen the result coming as the Men in Green are the ICC’s number-one ranked T20I team even as the Islanders are in eighth spot. Sarfaraz Ahmed started the post-World Cup journey with a 2-0 win in the ODIs, but slumped in the shortest format.

Sarfaraz has come under the scanner a number of time yet, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has persisted with him, giving him chances to make amends. He has tended to strain in the departments. Amidst action on the field, calls of removing Sarfaraz have also been doing the rounds.

Misbah not pleased by Sarfaraz Ahmed

In the meantime, it has been learned that head coach-cum-selector, Misbah-ul-Haq isn’t happy with the 32-year-old keeper by any stretch of the imagination. The veteran doesn’t like the attitude of the skipper and reckons that he shies away from responsibilities in the hour of need.

“He is unhappy that some players are just too relaxed and take training lightly and are not working on improving their cricket discipline. He has also not been encouraged by the attitude of captain, Sarfaraz Ahmed whom he feels shies away from taking responsibility when the chips are down,” a source was quoted as saying in Hindustan Times.

Another source stated that Misbah isn’t pleased with the behaviour of three players- Imad Wasim, Wahab Riaz and Haris Sohail. As per Misbah, the trio looks for excuses to skip nets and training sessions. “Several times he felt they were making excuses to shy away from training and proper nets. He got the feeling they had some sort of excuse ready to go easy on their training,” the source said.

Pakistan’s next assignment is the one-month tour of Australia. There they will play three T20Is in Sydney, Canberra and Perth followed by a couple of Tests in Brisbane and Adelaide. It has been learned that while Sarfaraz may retain his position as skipper for the shortest format, Azhar Ali is likely to be appointed as the red-ball skipper. The tour gets underway on November 3.

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