Pakistan’s hopes of advancing ahead in Champions Trophy 2025 has faded after suffering two consecutive losses with their latest defeat against India in a thrilling encounter. India was chasing a atrget of 242 and comfortably reached 244/4 in just 42.3 overs, India’s batting was led by Virat Kohli’s brilliant century. With two consecutive losses, Pakistan now finds themselves at the bottom of Group A even behind Bangladesh, who have just played a single match.
The poor performance sparked huge frustration amaong cricketing legends like Wasim Akram and Shoaib Akhtar, who have sharply criticised the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and the selection committee. Appearing on Sports Central after Pakistan’s loss to India in Dubai, Akram expressed his disappointment, saying that fans are no longer willing to tolerate empty promises and hopeful expectations.
Wasim Akram On Pakistan’s Loss
“We need drastic steps. Enough is enough! We have been losing with the same players for years now in white-ball cricket. It’s time to take a bold step and bring in young players who play fearless cricket. If you want to make big changes, go for it. Give the new players six months, back them, and start preparing for the 2026 T20 World Cup. We have had enough. You gave them chances and made them stars. Pakistan bowlers took 24 wickets in the last five games but at an average of 60. The shocking statistic is that Pakistan’s bowling average is the second worst among 14 teams, which includes Oman and the USA, that played ODI cricket this year. What should we do now? The Chairman should return home, call the captain, coach, and the selection committee, and ask the latter what kind of selection they made. Did it look like Khusdil Shah and Salman Agha could have dismissed any Indian batter? We are screaming here, saying the squad is not okay. The Chairman told them to announce the squad with a day left. They had a meeting for an hour and walked out with the same team,” Wasim Akram said.
“The captain is the leader of the ship. How will the team succeed if he doesn’t know which match-winners he needs? Pakistani players looked completely out of the game when India reached the 15th or 18th over in their chase. Fans leaving early is something I have never seen before. This is unfortunate,” he added.
Shoaib Akhtar Blames Pakistan’s Management
“I am not disappointed at all (by the defeat to India) because I knew what would happen. You can’t select five bowlers, the whole world is playing six bowlers… you go with two all-rounders but this is just brainless and clueless management.
I am really disappointed,” Akhtar said in an emotional video that he posted on his X account. “We can’t blame the kids (Pakistan players); The players are just as the team management is! They don’t know what to do. The intent is a different thing, they don’t have the skillsets like Rohit, Virat, and Shubman. Neither they know anything, nor the management. They have just gone to play without any clear direction. No one knows what they should do.”
