Shoaib Akhtar blames Sarfraz Ahmed's 'poor captaincy' for loss against India

Former Pakistani speedster Shoaib Akhtar has slammed Sarfraz Ahmed for his ‘poor captaincy’ following their disastrous defeat against India. Akhtar also emphasised that the wicketkeeper-batsman cannot afford any more slip-ups if Pakistan aims to sanguine their berth for the semi-finals. He also lashed out at head coach Mickey Arthur over his team selection prior to the high-octane game. However, at the end of the match, Arthur took the blame for the selection.

Sarfraz’s captaincy was quite abrupt, to say the least. For starters, he took a very blunt decision opting to go with a spinner for the new ball. Upon winning a handy toss in overcast conditions and witnessing a brilliant opening over from Amir, Sarfraz surprisingly decided to give the new-ball to spinner Imad Wasim at the other end. This, in turn, provided Indian openers ample time to settle in the crease and later take on the attack when the movement died.

Poor captaincy and decision making

Speaking about the loss, Akhtar was quoted as saying, “Who in their right mind would open the bowling in such English conditions with a spinner who can turn the ball. The only way to beat India was to bowl them out for a manageable total by taking wickets. Yet, instead of attacking them with the new ball, we chose to contain them. This was poor captaincy and poor decision making by the team think-tank.”

He also went on to add, “It is astonishing that the coach does not see any difference between Junaid (Khan) and Hasan (Ali). How can you compare them – one is a natural left-arm swing bowler and the other is a right-arm pacer.”

Pakistan will next take on the Proteas at Edgbaston tomorrow and then lock horns with Sri Lanka at Cardiff on the 12th. Considering their woeful net run rate of -3.024, the Men in Green will have to win both their matches and hope that other results go their way.