NEW DELHI: Former Pakistan wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal launched a blistering critique of the current Pakistan team, likening them to a "locality team" and accusing the players of prioritizing personal milestones over the team's success.
Pakistan found themselves in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons after suffering a humiliating defeat against England in the first Test in Multan on Friday. England dominated across all five days, ultimately securing victory by an innings and 47 runs in the sweltering heat of Multan.
Pakistan made unwanted history by becoming the first team in Test cricket to lose a match despite posting a total of over 550 runs in their first innings.
Disheartened by the team's performance, Kamran slammed the hosts, labeling them a "locality team" and asserting that Pakistan can only manage to win against weaker opponents.
"The world must be amazed by the way Pakistan lost. Nobody will believe this. Pakistan side has become a locality team. Even the club team doesn't perform like this. This is the current standard of our team. We win against small teams but can't even get close to big teams. The whole world is laughing at the Pakistan team," Kamran said on his YouTube channel.
In the first innings, Pakistan saw three centurions—skipper Shan Masood, Salman Ali Agha, and Abdullah Shafique—whose efforts helped push the team’s total to an impressive 556. However, their hard-earned runs ultimately proved futile as the advantage slipped away.
Akmal didn't hold back in his criticism, accusing the players of selfishness and prioritizing personal milestones over the team’s success.
"Pakistan team have selfish approach. In our country, players play for their personal milestones and then think about the team," he added.
Before the commencement of the opening Test, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) hosted a 'Connection Camp', which was aimed at establishing a clear and unified vision for the future of Pakistan cricket.
However, after the camp, the lack of unity within the team became an open secret in front of the entire world. PCB Chief Operating Officer Salman Naseer admitted that the lack of unity among the team and management was discussed during the camp.
Kamran asked for an inquiry within the team to find out the players who are responsible and wants them to be dropped following the "shameful performance" of the players.
"The captain should be asked who is the player involved in this. Inquire about this and remove the responsible person. You are favouring them without performance. The whole world is playing against Pakistan to make records. Shameful performance," he remarked.
After losing six consecutive Test matches, Pakistan will look to find a way to return to winning ways in the second Test which will begin on Tuesday in Multan.
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