PCB Chief Zaka Ashraf Criticizes Former Management After Asia Cup Exit
Pakistan's Asia Cup 2023 campaign ended on a dismal note
In a move to quickly address the unexpected poor performance of the Pakistan team in the recently concluded Asia Cup 2023, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chief, Zaka Ashraf convened a high-level meeting on Thursday, September 21.
PCB reassesses priorities after disappointing Asia Cup 2023 outing
The team, led by Babar Azam, was a hot favourite entering the tournament, especially as they held the No. 1 spot in the ICC ODI team rankings. However, their campaign came to a screeching halt as they suffered demoralising losses to arch-rivals India and co-hosts Sri Lanka, finishing last in the Super Four stage.
The review meeting was attended by a number of key figures, including captain Babar, vice-captain Shadab Khan, and the complete coaching panel comprised of head coach Grant Bradburn, batting coach Andrew Puttick, and bowling coach Morne Morkel. Providing additional layers of expertise were former Pakistan captains Misbah-ul-Haq and Mohammad Hafeez, who were also present to offer their insights.
After the in-depth discussion, the PCB issued a statement in which Ashraf subtly took aim at previous board leadership, suggesting that their policies had a detrimental impact on player performance. According to Ashraf, the lax approach of the former board in allowing players to participate extensively in franchise leagues led to a condition of fatigue, hampering their ability to perform on the national stage.
Ashraf pointed out that the objective of the meeting was not just to dissect what went wrong, but to foster an environment of open dialogue and consensus-building. He added that the aim was to jointly identify the team's vulnerabilities and strengths and to chart a clear course for future improvements.
"The philosophy behind this review was to create an atmosphere of open discussion and develop consensus. The idea is to have everyone on board and debate about performances, identifying the problems and their solutions. We have to debate strengths and weaknesses so that we are clear about what and where we need to invest for the betterment of our team," said Ashraf in the statement.
Ashraf further disclosed that a collective agreement was reached to give precedence to national duty over league commitments and to adopt a proactive strategy for managing players' workloads effectively.
"Discussion revealed that the previous management had allowed a lot of players to play league cricket which caused them to fatigued ahead of their national duty. But going forward we have agreed to form a proactive approach to tackle players' workload and give national duty a priority," the 71-year-old added,” added the PCB chief.
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