Former wicket-keeper batter Kamran Akmal on Friday asked those at the helm of Pakistan cricket’s affairs to stop changing captains, while suggesting the players to get their basics of the game right.
Talking to Geo News, Akmal wondered why they always talk about changing the skipper whenever “new heavyweights took charge of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) office”.
“Is it because the captain is not their favourite and they want one of their choice? Do you think the new captain will bring Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Steve Smith or Mitchell Starc in the team to boost its performance?” he asked, ranting over the endless discourse of finding someone suitable to step into the boots of current captains.
His remarks came after the Men in Green’s back to back debacles in the world of cricket, including the fresh one — a home ground Test series whitewash at the hands of Bangladesh.
The ex-cricketer said when they had to play with the same players in the same system, there’s no use of changing the leadership then.
“Everyone including the captain, coach and selectors should set their direction right and reform their thinking,” he suggested.
He asserted that not by changing the skipper, but changing the thinking would do good to the Green Shirts. “Why they wanted to bring a change now, if they did not do that after losing the Asia Cup, ODI World Cup and T20 World Cup,” he questioned.
Endorsing Babar Azam for the captaincy role, Akmal said let the 29-year-old continue till Champions Trophy. “What difference does it make [by the way],” he stated.
The veteran player said they should revert to the fundamentals of 20-30 years ago, stressing at what happened in the domestic and club cricket.
“If they do not get their basics right then such blunders will continue to happen and replacing captains will make no difference,” he maintained.
