The former Captain has showcased disappointed over selection criteria and lack of consistence chances for players.
LAHORE: (UrduPoint/Pakistan Point News- Oct 13th, 2020) Former Pakistan Captain Shoaib Malik urged the captain and team management to back the players rather than suppressing them.
Shoaib Malik also showcased his disappointment over selection criteria and lack of consistent chances for players.
He expressed these views during an exclusive interview to a local news organization on Tuesday.
Shoaib Malik said that the players should be backed even if they failed to perform in one or two matches because suppressing the players could be damaging for the entire team.
“We should give chances on a consistent basis in order to produce good results,” said Shoaib Malik, arguing that if the players failed to deliver in some matches they should not be pressurized.
“Actually we get panic as we see some players failing to perform in few matches,” he further said.
He also discussed the pressure from the media side, saying that it could be handled by just sharing your selections. “No point in stressing over poor results and drop in rankings if you can’t back your players,” said the player.
According to Cricket Pakistan, he praised the Pakistan Cricket board (PCB) for starting the domestic season and convincing Zimbabwe to tour Pakistan despite Covid-19 pandemic.
“It is a great achievement for the Pakistan Cricket Board to hold the event during Covid-19 and successfully implement the SOPs,” he said. “Later Zimbabwe’s team will also tour Pakistan, which is also a good news for Pakistan cricket.”
He also backed Prime Minister Imran Khan’s vision with regards to changes in domestic cricket structure.
“This [changes in domestic cricket structure] is not my domain and I’m sure PM Imran has a vision and we need to help him in this process,” he said.
“ You now I normally do not use harsh words but I am disappointed to see that players are being judged on one or two matches, be it a youngster or a senior player,” he said, adding that the rules should be the same for both if they fulfilled the criteria for selection. He went on to say: “ If a senior player has personal agendas and does not help young players in the dressing room, then he should not be part of the side even if he is performing really well. At the end of the day, then team should win and so there is no place for such compromises,”.
Malik also believed that experience and a proper team combination was key to winning ICC events such as the ODI and T20 World Cups.
“I believe that a backup should be developed after the main team is ready. This team already has a lot of youngsters. The main goal is should be to win major ICC events which can only be done if the main team has experience. For instance, if we look at Babar Azam, who is one of our best players, he has only played around 70 ODIs in the last five years and if we expect to win the World Cup we need players with more experience under their belt,” he said. “We need to develop a pool of 20 to 22 players for the 2023 World Cup, as well as the next two T20 World Cups, and persist with them until the mega event against all the teams we face.”
He also highlighted the strategy of former Pakistan captains with regards to inclusion of young players in the side.
“If there is an exceptional talent that comes up, that player should be given an opportunity but only after you have won the series. I have played under the captaincy of Wasim [Akram] bhai, Waqar [Younis] bhai, Moin [Khan] bhai and Inzamam bhai and all of them adopted the same approached successfully,” he said.
The Sialkot-born also urged Babar Azam to become a strong leader and back his players, while also stressing on naming the captain for a longer duration.
“If your selection committee and management can get contracts for two or three years, then why not the captain?” he said. “My advice for Babar is that he shouldn’t compromise on certain things because he is the one who will be leading the side on the field. If he will back the players, then the team will produce good results and the same players will back the captain. He needs to be strong as a captain and his performances are such that he can improve Pakistan’s cricket.”
He also praised the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for starting the domestic season and convincing Zimbabwe to tour Pakistan despite Covid-19 pandemic.
