Former Pakistan wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal launched a furious rant after Pakistan suffered a 1-2 defeat in their recent ODI series against Bangladesh. The visitors lost the series when they fell short by 11 runs in the decider at Mirpur. Frustrated by Pakistan’s poor performance, Akmal questioned how the team could hope to win an ICC trophy if they can’t even claim a bilateral series – can they really expect to win it by stealing?
Akmal’s comment on stealing trophies immediately brought up PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi. In September last year, Naqvi walked off with the Asia Cup trophy in Dubai after India refused to accept it from him. The trophy was never awarded on stage, sparking criticism and earning him the viral nickname “trophy chor.”
While Akmal did not directly name Naqvi, his comments were widely interpreted as a reference to the PCB chairman.
“If you’re not going to win against teams, then how will you succeed in an ICC event? Will you steal the trophy? You have to play, you have to win, you have to build a proper team. That’s the truth,” Akmal said on The Game Plan show.
Pakistan Cricket: A comedy series
Akmal criticised Pakistan’s selection policy, pointing out that several uncapped players picked for the Bangladesh ODIs, including Shamyl Hussain and Ghazi Ghori, had limited domestic experience and fewer than 1,000 runs in List A cricket.
He questioned the team’s approach, urging fans and analysts not to overthink, and described the current state of Pakistan cricket as a “comedy series”.
“If they play cricket, you’ll see from the basics how they perform. You’ve set your own standards here, some players haven’t even scored a thousand runs in domestic cricket, yet they’re playing against Pakistan. Some haven’t played two or three matches, some haven’t had one or two domestic seasons, and yet they’re playing international cricket,” Akmal said.
“What are you even talking about? What are you thinking? Why are you overthinking so much? Why are you getting so worked up? You should be laughing and enjoying it.
“Watch cricket like you’re watching a comedy series. That’s how I watch it—I’m just enjoying it because I know what this really is. It’s a comedy series now,” Akmal added.
Before the series against Bangladesh, Pakistan also struggled in the T20 World Cup, failing to meet expectations and missing out on the knockout stages. After their international commitments, Pakistan’s players will participate in the Pakistan Super League (PSL), which is scheduled to begin on March 26.
