All posts tagged: pakistan cricket team

PCB tightens grip post Naseem Shah controversy, warns centrally contracted players

PCB tightens grip post Naseem Shah controversy, warns centrally contracted players

Published by Parlour News

Modern cricket isn’t just about what happens on the field anymore. Players today carry their identity off it as well, especially in the age of social media. And sometimes, one wrong move online can create as much noise as anything in a match. The Pakistan Cricket Board made that clear recently. Naseem Shah was fined PKR 20 million by PCB (AFP) Naseem Shah, the 23-year-old fast bowler, found himself at the centre of a controversy after a post from his account appeared to take a dig at Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, asking, “Why is she being treated like a queen at Lord’s?” He later claimed that his account had been hacked, but by then, the conversation had already gathered momentum. The PCB didn’t take long to respond. A PKR 20 million fine and a show-cause notice followed, sending a strong signal that the board is not willing to overlook such issues. It also made one thing clear: players, along with those managing their social media accounts, will be held responsible if guidelines are breached. …

‘Weakest PCB I have ever seen’

‘Weakest PCB I have ever seen’

Published by Webster

3 min readMar 19, 2026 11:15 AM IST Former Pakistan cricketer Ahmed Shehzad ripped into the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), calling them the weakest and a spineless board, while blaming them for blindly supporting a select few players, which led to the downfall of the Pakistan cricket team. “The calibre of your players is not at that level, which was built up as a brand by the Pakistan Cricket Board for the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 5 and 7 years ago. These 6-8 boys… they are also the face of the PSL. They are also the face of our Pakistan team. Will they change Pakistan’s destiny?” said Shehzad on his YouTube channel. “You provided all the sponsorships to those boys, endorsed them, and invested money in them. You gave them captaincies in the PSL, right? You made them the thumb of the Pakistan team. You handed over the entire Pakistan cricket team to those 6 boys and their agents. And what have they done now? The fire they have lit in the jungle, the fun …

Shahid Afridi blasts selectors over Shaheen captaincy call after Bangladesh defeat: Real surgery should be on committee

Shahid Afridi blasts selectors over Shaheen captaincy call after Bangladesh defeat: Real surgery should be on committee

Published by Parlour News

Former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi on Monday launched a scathing attack on the country’s selection committee, holding them directly responsible for the humiliating 2–1 ODI series defeat to Bangladesh on Sunday in Dhaka. Afridi not only questioned the Pakistan Cricket Board‘s decision to hand the ODI captaincy to his son-in-law Shaheen Afridi but also said he found little logic in the removal of Babar Azam from the squad following his underwhelming show in the T20 World Cup. Pakistan lost 1-2 against Bangladesh in ODIs Pakistan’s struggles in international cricket continued as the team, after failing to reach the semifinals of the T20 World Cup earlier this month, went on to lose the ODI series against Bangladesh. ALSO READ: Fee paid to Pakistani cricketers contributes to Indian deaths: Gavaskar fumes at blood money spent by Sunrisers Leeds Speaking in a video posted on his social media account, Afridi blamed the selectors and their questionable decisions for Pakistan’s disastrous run in 2026, including the call to appoint Shaheen as ODI captain. “You saw the performances in the …

Pakistan cricket crisis: Aaqib Javed stands by Babar Azam selection, launches probe Into Fakhar Zamaan injury mystery | Cricket News

Pakistan cricket crisis: Aaqib Javed stands by Babar Azam selection, launches probe Into Fakhar Zamaan injury mystery | Cricket News

Published by Webster

Chief selector Aaqib Javed fronted a combative press conference alongside Misbah-ul-Haq and Sarfaraz Ahmed on Saturday, defending the decision to take Babar Azam to the T20 World Cup, announcing a formal inquiry into the post-tournament injuries of Fakhar Zamaan and Naseem Shah, and urging Pakistan’s cricketing public to break its habit of demanding wholesale change after every defeat. Babar’s recall to the T20 squad despite poor form in the format was the sharpest line of questioning. Javed said the thinking was rooted in Sri Lanka’s spin-friendly, low-scoring conditions, where an anchor batter capable of holding an innings together had tactical value — regardless of strike rate. “Being in the 15 does not mean he had to play every match. The coach and captain had the freedom to use him where conditions demanded a technically sound batsman,” Aaqib Javed said. Babar is currently sidelined with a finger injury and unavailable for the ongoing Bangladesh series. Javed turned the question around: “If we had reached the semi-finals, would he even have been fit to play? That is …

Rashid Latif blasts Pakistan captain Salman Agha after T20 World Cup exit

Rashid Latif blasts Pakistan captain Salman Agha after T20 World Cup exit

Published by Webster

5 min readMar 1, 2026 04:30 PM IST With the need to restrict Sri Lanka to a total below 147 in their chase of 212, Pakistan’s bowlers could not complete the task, and Sri Lanka almost won the Super 8 match at Pallekele on Saturday, eventually falling short by just five runs. However, the result meant that Pakistan fell behind on net run rate and New Zealand advanced to the semi-finals of the marquee event, resulting in Salman Ali Agha’s side bowing out of the tournament. The Pakistan team management made three changes to the side for the do-or-die match against Sri Lanka, bringing in bowlers like Naseem Shah and Abrar Ahmed. Pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi, all-rounders Shadab Khan and Mohammad Nawaz, and spinner Usman Tariq also shared the bowling duties. Former Pakistan captain Rashid Latif has blamed the team management for not using the bowlers at the right time and with the right tactics. He also criticised captain Salman Ali Agha, stating that even if he had bowlers like Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Shoaib …

Salman Ali Agha responds to ‘dummy captain’ jibe after Pakistan’s exit

Salman Ali Agha responds to ‘dummy captain’ jibe after Pakistan’s exit

Published by Webster

6 min readMar 1, 2026 02:19 PM IST Pakistan cricket team captain Salman Ali Agha was grilled by journalists from his home country in a testy press conference after the team was eliminated from the running in the Super 8 stage, which meant that for the fourth time in as many years, Pakistan had failed to qualify for the semi-finals of an ICC event. In the aftermath, Agha faced a firing squad of journalists from his country, who asked him questions like whether he was ‘dummy captain for coach Mike Hesson’ and ‘if he would step down himself or wait for the Pakistan Cricket Board to sack him’. Despite the provocative tone of the questions, Agha navigated the choppy waters of the press conference with remarkable restraint. Here’s a look at the two confrontational questions (and Agha’s measured responses to them): Question: “It is very disappointing that the Pakistan team has been knocked out. You showed great intent playing at number three during the Sri Lanka and Australia series, but this entire tournament hasn’t gone …

‘Sabke laadle hain’: Basit Ali slams Saim Ayub’s ‘special treatment’ after Jofra Archer exposes opener’s weakness | Cricket News

‘Sabke laadle hain’: Basit Ali slams Saim Ayub’s ‘special treatment’ after Jofra Archer exposes opener’s weakness | Cricket News

Published by Webster

4 min readFeb 25, 2026 02:27 PM IST With his knock of seven runs against England in Pakistan’s two-wicket loss against England in the Super 8 encounter at Pallekele in the T20 World Cup on Tuesday, Pakistani opener Saim Ayub once again failed to get past a score of 30 runs in this T20 World Cup. The 23-year-old opener currently has a tally of 70 at an average of 14.00 in the event so far and the opener fell trying to a play a pull shot off the bowling of England pacer Jofra Archer on Tuesday. Former Pakistani player Basit Ali took a jibe at Ayub after his latest failure, branding the opener a ‘laadla’ (favourite) of the management. His dismissal against England meant that the 23-year-old opener fell on a single digit score for the 15th time in the last one year in T20Is. Basit Ali’s jibe came after Shoaib Malik spoke about Ayub getting pout to a 145kph ball bowled by Jofra Archer in the third over of Pakistan’s innings. Ali claimed that …

Mohammad Amir reveals Pakistan players were laughing ‘like nothing happened’ just one hour after historic USA defeat in 2024 | Cricket News

Mohammad Amir reveals Pakistan players were laughing ‘like nothing happened’ just one hour after historic USA defeat in 2024 | Cricket News

Published by Webster

4 min readUpdated: Feb 25, 2026 02:00 PM IST Pakistan’s passage to the semi-finals of the ongoing T20 World Cup seems unlikely after their two-wicket loss against England in their Group 2 Super 8 encounter at Pallekele on Tuesday night. During the previous edition of the T20 World Cup in 2024, Pakistan had failed to get past the group stage, where they lost against the USA and India before winning against Canada and Ireland. Former Pakistan pacer Mohammad Amir, who was part of the 2024 T20 World Cup Pakistan team, has now revealed how some players in that 2024 Pakistan team, led by Babar Azam, were still laughing just an hour of the loss against USA and behaved as if ‘nothing has happened’. “Those who feel they cannot sleep for the whole night. I was very hurt. Post the USA loss, there were players who were indulging in laughter. Our flight was one hour later after the match and there were 2-3 players in the team who would indulge in laughter. Like nothing has happened. …

‘Pakistan coach speaks about modern cricket… does he even know its definition?’: Salman Butt on Mike Hesson | Cricket News

‘Pakistan coach speaks about modern cricket… does he even know its definition?’: Salman Butt on Mike Hesson | Cricket News

Published by Webster

Former Pakistan cricketer Salman Butt has slammed Pakistan cricket team after their two-wicket defeat to England in the Super 8 on Tuesday which leaves them on the edge of an exit from the T20 World Cup. Butt singled out Pakistan’s coach Mike Hesson for criticism. “I honestly don’t understand the coach’s logic. Who is in the team, who is out, what is someone’s batting order? When to give someone the ball, when to take them off? Who to bowl against whom? He has just memorized a few non-cricketing terms like ‘match-ups.’ He talks about strike rates and ‘modern cricket,’ but neither he nor the others actually know the definition of modern cricket. He talks about power hitting, but look at the work they’ve done with these boys—where is the power hitting? Who is hitting sixes? Our players can’t seem to hit a single shot other than toward mid-wicket,” Butt said in a video on his YouTube page. He then turned the spotlight on the Pakistan cricket team’s shortcomings. “Let’s discuss a few things that I’ve …

England vs Pakistan Highlights, T20 World Cup 2026: Harry Brook’s sensational ton helps ENG qualify for semifinal, beat PAK by 2 wickets | Cricket News

England vs Pakistan Highlights, T20 World Cup 2026: Harry Brook’s sensational ton helps ENG qualify for semifinal, beat PAK by 2 wickets | Cricket News

Published by Webster

England (ENG) vs Pakistan (PAK) T20 World Cup Match Today Live Cricket Score Updates: England, riding on their skipper Harry Brook’s sensational century, beat Pakistan by two wickets in the T20 World Cup 2026 Super 8 Group 2 game at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Kandy on Tuesday and thus qualified for the semifinals as well. Pakistan, after winning the toss and electing to bat first, managed 164/9 in 20 overs. It was an innings of two halves, where opener Sahibzada Farhan scored a fighting fifty, but the middle order could not withstand the pressure as Pakistan’s innings faltered towards the end. Story continues below this ad Chasing 165, England were off to a terrible start with opener Phil Salt being dismissed for a golden duck. Jos Buttler was removed on two off three in the third over, before Jacob Bethell fell in the fifth over, all removed by Shaheen Afridi. When Tom Banton was dismissed by Usman Tariq in the eighth over, England had only 58 runs on the board. England were pegged …