Waqar Younis blames Shahid Afridi for T20 debacle

Former Pakistan coach Waqar Younis has lashed out on the former skipper and all-rounder Shahid Afridi, blaming him for the string of poor performances of the Pakistan national team.

Waqar Younis also urged the authorities to drop Umar Akmal. In a detailed report on his coaching stint with the Pakistan team, Waqar Younis blamed Shahid Afridi for the run of T20 defeats against England, New Zealand World T20 losses, and the defeats in Asia Cup.

Younis particularly blamed Afridi’s poor form, captaincy and attitude for the national team’s recent poor run. As a result of their poor run this year, both Shahid Afridi and Waqar Younis had to quit their positions in the team.

The excerpts from his detailed report were recently leaked out in the media. Talking about Umar Akmal, Younis clearly stated that the batsman lacked discipline and was arrogant at all times. “Umar Akmal was asked by Haroon Rasheed (former chief selector) to come the next day for fitness test to join the team in Sri Lanka for ODIs, instead he chose to catch a flight to Caribbean for a lucrative league without informing anyone. Few months later, when he was caught in the Hyderabad incident or misbehaving with his domestic team coach, all times he managed to retain his place back in team. Is this what criteria we are setting for selection of new players?,” Waqar wrote in his report.

He further drew comparisons between Akmal with the likes of Andrew Symonds and Kevin Pietersen on the grounds of discipline. “Andrew Symonds was a very talented player for Australia or Kevin Peterson for England but due to their behaviour they were dropped and never picked again irrespective of their talent. Are we bold enough to take this step or do we fear media or pressure from different people to play certain players? I can assure you that sacrificing one Umar Akmal will allow us to develop other players who can truly and proudly wear the star on their chest and represent Pakistan,” Waqar said.

Commenting on the poor show put up by the team in the World T20, Waqar put the blame on poor leadership by Shahid Afridi. “We lost to New Zealand, Asia Cup and T20 World Cup due to poor captaincy. On several occasions, I had made it clear that Shahid Afridi was not performing with bat, ball or captaincy but I was not listened to. Poor tactics really cost us matches. Meeting was held after the NZ T20 series where the boys emphasised that they felt confused with what the captain was telling them to do,” the report said.

He revealed that Shahid Afridi never led from the front nor did he set an example for others. “He skipped practices and meetings frequently. Shahid Afridi did not attend few meetings or practice, a captain leads from the front, not like this. It was unfair how he played Mohammad Nawaz during the game which destroyed the youngster’s confidence,” he quoted in the report.

“He was so fixated on his own performance that he did not execute any game plan or use the right players at the right time. His sudden decisions on changing the batting order or field placements did not help the team,” Waqar wrote further.

Waqar also revealed the interference of some senior officials in the decision making. Citing an example on the same, he said it was only shocking to see Younis Khan’s name in the squad for the England tour.

“I attended the selection meeting in Karachi along with Misbah, we had a long and fruitful meeting on several players. As I arrived back in Lahore, a completely different team was announced which I was not happy with, also after dropping Younis Khan from one series, he was suddenly put back into the team because of media pressure,” Waqar said in his report.

He also added that not just Waqar Younis himself but even Misbah Ul Haq was disappointed with the team selection. “Both Misbah and I were really disappointed and frustrated with this outcome. I met both Mr Shahryar Khan and Mr Najam Sethi and expressed my grievances to no avail. I was specifically told by Mr Sethi that I had to accept on media that I was happy with team and it was decided in consultation with me,” he added.

At the same time, he also accepted that Younis Khan has been a great player but at that moment of time, his selection certainly wasn’t justified. “I have a lot of respect for Younis Khan, he has been a great server for Pakistan but when you are trying to develop a team for the future and for modern cricket, I, along with the team management did not feel that he warranted a place in the team and the direction was not right,” the report stated.

Waqar also reveals that the Pakistan Super League did more harm than good to the national team.

“There was no training by the boys during the PSL, it was more a holiday for them. They came to the Asia Cup tired and unfit,” he said.

Also read – PCB has made up its mind to have a foreign coach: Aaqib Javed