Salman Butt feels that Pakistan should have handled the confrontation between Mohammad Yousuf, the batting coach, and star pacer Shaheen Afridi better. For those who don’t know, Shaheen and Yousuf allegedly got into a verbal altercation during Pakistan’s visit of the UK prior to the 2024 T20 World Cup.
As a warm-up to the major ICC event, Pakistan played three Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is) against Ireland and four against England. Yousuf reportedly admonished Shaheen during a net practice during the UK trip because he was bowling too many balls without hitting any. The left-arm seamer had allegedly replied by telling Yousuf to shut up.
“The management ought to have taken action if they believed Shaheen was purposefully not complying with them and was not carrying out the plans. Cricket Pakistan cited Butt as saying, “If he wasn’t disciplined, then they should have dropped him and gone with another player.”
It is the responsibility of management to act, not to complain: Salman butt
The former captain of Pakistan believed that in order to lead by example, the team administration need to have taken harsh action against Shaheen. Butt said it would have been appropriate to remove the previous captain of the Twenty20 Indian cricket team from the team. The former cricket player turned specialist was not pleased that the coaches allegedly complained about the incident to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) rather than facing any disciplinary action.
“I suppose anyone can achieve that if you gave him a chance despite all of these problems and are now complaining. Why are these well-known figures being appointed with such large salaries? It is the responsibility of management to act, not to grumble,” Butt said.
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Pakistan’s T20 World Cup campaign was forgettable as they were eliminated in the first round itself after losing to the United States and India. Next month, the Men in Green will play a two-match home Test series against Bangladesh in an attempt to get back on track. Jason Gillespie, Pakistan’s red-ball coach, has made suggestions that Shaheen will take breaks during the series to control his workload. Additionally, citing workload management, PCB refused the 24-year-old a No Objection Certificate (NOC) to compete in the forthcoming GT20 Canada.
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