Pakistan’s defeat

Tuesday, January 27, 2009 -- During the third One day International between Sri Lanka and Pakistan played on 24th January 2009 at Lahore, Pakistan was all out for only 75. This is their least total on home soil. Also, they were defeated by 234 runs which is their heaviest defeat in history in terms of runs. Due to the above, the chief selector Abdul Qadir, the coach Intikhab Alam and the captain Shoiab Malik have been told to submit a detailed report explaining the reasons of this defeat to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).

Chairman’s statement

The chairman of the PCB, Ijaz Butt said that he had asked the manager and the coach of the Pakistan cricket team to present their comments regarding the loss within a couple of days. This would enable the PCB to determine what amendments should be done to set things right. He added that the Board cannot accept such performances from the team. He was astonished at the mode in which the batsmen played, but could not comment regarding anything unless he had a detailed report.

Opinion of the coach

The coach said that he was not giving any excuses for the severe defeat. The team management is to be held responsible for this loss. He added that this defeat can prove to be a blessing in disguise as one can only move forward from such a state. The team would certainly not perform worse than they did during this match.

It seems likely that Malik’s performance as the skipper would be questioned. In the first place, his record is not impressive and there are frequent reports that he tries to eliminate players from the team with whom he is not on good terms. Senator Enver Baig commented that the team is not united and the captain has not been successful in getting the boys together.