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"Pakistan Cricket Is...": Danish Kaneria's Bold Statement Ahead Of IND Vs PAK Clash

Arunima Purohit

Pakistan [Source: @iam_JZK/X.com] Pakistan [Source: @iam_JZK/X.com] 

The most-anticipated match of the Asia Cup 2025, between India and Pakistan, is set to start on September 21 at 8 PM in Dubai. After losing against India in the group stage encounter, the Men in Green have taken the handshake row quite seriously, cancelling the press conference twice. 

Despite their mediocre performance in the Asia Cup 2025, where they only managed to win against Oman by a considerable margin, their strategy against match referee Andy Pycroft was unsuccessful. Former Pakistan cricketer Danish Kaneria slammed the team, management, and the Board for such actions in the tournament. 

Danish Kaneria Calls Out Pakistan Cricket

Pakistan have always been criticized for the quality of cricket they have shown recently. Former cricketer Danish Kaneria believes that the players and management don't take accountability for their actions and instead keep blaming others. 

In the ongoing Asia Cup 2025, Pakistan won two matches played against Oman and the UAE. Moreover, against the UAE, the batters failed miserably, and Shaheen Shah Afridi scored 29 off 14 balls to rescue the team. Even against India, he was the one who played better than the rest of the batters. Hence, Kaneria criticized the team selection for the tournament as well.

"Pakistan cricket is in a pathetic state right now. This always happens: when there is an issue (handshake snub), instead of taking responsibility, they keep blaming others. The selectors were entrusted with the responsibility of 22 crore people. What team did you select? What coaching assignments did you give? What was your game plan, strategy, and approach?" said Kaneria as quoted by IANS. 

Andy Pycroft To Officiate In India Vs Pakistan Match

Despite all kinds of protests by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), referee Andy Pycroft will be the match official in the India vs Pakistan match. After the handshake row, Pakistan accused Pycroft of siding with the Indian team and leaving them without holding them accountable for their actions. 

This turned into a huge controversy. Pakistan cancelled two pre-match press conferences and was also on the verge of cancelling the match against the UAE. However, all their attempts were wasted as ICC stood by Pycroft and released a statement saying he did not violate the 'Spirit of the Game'. Now, he will be the match referee for the upcoming game.