Former Test captain Mohammad Yousuf has publicly criticized the coaching staff of the national cricket team, asserting that they have neglected to address significant technical flaws in the batting of key players, including Babar Azam. In a pointed social media post made on Sunday, Yousuf expressed his long-standing concerns about the batting techniques of Pakistan’s players, claiming that he had previously warned about these weaknesses. He alleged that certain coaches associated with Babar and the team have obstructed his attempts to help the players improve their skills.
Former batsman Mohammad Wasim, who has remained chief selector from 2020-2022, also questioned Imam-ul-Haq’s calf muscle injury during the second Test at Lord’s. (Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
“That failure has dragged Pakistan cricket into the decline we see today,” he added. He said the poor technique of Pakistani players has now been brutally exposed from Bangladesh to England. “What could have been corrected years ago has instead become a glaring weakness, leaving Pakistan cricket vulnerable and struggling on the international stage,” wrote Yousuf, who had resigned as batting coach with the PCB last year in July.
Yousuf argued that the problems, which he believes could have been corrected at the time, have since developed into major weaknesses and contributed to Pakistan’s current decline. “These coaches are poison for the game. They lack vision, they block progress, and they misguide even the most talented players. If our cricketers don’t learn who to listen to, their careers will end far sooner than they should. The spate of poor results and batting collapses in recent times culminating with the first Test defeat at Leeds on the tour of England has clearly created a division in Pakistan cricket with some former cricketers also going after each other on social media and in mainstream media.
