Former Pakistan captain and coach Mohammad Hafeez accused the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) of being greedy and making deals with the likes of Mohammad Amir and Imad Wasim to secure their place in the 15-member squad for the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024.
Hafeez's sensational claim came after Pakistan suffered a narrow a 6-run defeat against Team India in New York on Sunday. Chasing a 120-run target after bundling out Men in Blue for 119 in 19 overs, Pakistan were restricted to 113/7 in 20 overs.
Mohammad Rizwan led Pakistan's batting with a mediocre innings of 31 off 44 balls. Apart from Rizwan, no other batters managed to score above 20 runs in the run-chase, resulting in their defeat against India.
Rizwan's dismissal put a brake on Pakistan's momentum. Eventually, the Men in Green fell just 7 runs short of achieving the target.
Mohammad Hafeez slams PCB for ruining Pakistan cricket
Mohammad Hafeez didn't shy away from lambasting PCB for their decisions that he believes are detrimental to Pakistan cricket. He suggested that the board might have placed deals with Mohammad Amir and Imad Wasim that prompted them to come out of retirement.
Former Pakistan cricketer questioned PCB for including Amir and Wasim in the 15-member squad for the showpiece despite not having played domestic cricket after a significant hiatus.
"They (PCB) brought them here out of greed, made deals with such players (Amir and Wasim) who have ruined Pakistan's cricket," Hafeez said during the discussion on Pakistan news channel
"I was in the domestic circuit, but no one wants to play domestic cricket. It is because they were telling me that 'any of us gets selected, we will take it." he added.
For unversed, Mohammad Amir and Imad Wasim retired from international cricket in 2020 and 2023, respectively. In March 2024, Amir decided to take back the retirement and made himself available for the Pakistan team.
Mohammad Amir was part of the Pakistan team that played in the T20I series against New Zealand, Ireland and England in build-up to the T20 World Cup 2024.
Imad Wasim came out of retirement after meeting PCB officials in April 2024 and made available for the T20 World Cup.
Playing in the World Cup as another franchise league, says Hafeez
Mohammad Hafeez believes that Mohammad Amir and Imad Wasim are playing T20 World Cup as just another franchise T20 league since none of the leagues were happening before the World Cup.
"When asked to play for Pakistan six months ago, they said they wanted to play in leagues. Since no leagues are happening these days, they are playing in the World Cup. They are treating the World Cup as if it is just another league," he added.
Meanwhile, Babar Azam-led Men in Green have been besieged for two consecutive defeats against the USA and India in the group stage of the ongoing T20 World Cup.
Pakistan will play their next match against Canada at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York on Tuesday, June 11.
