Not only did Pakistan’s ICC T20 World Cup 2024 campaign in the USA and West Indies end in failure on the pitch, but it also culminated in a messy incident off it.
Fast bowler Haris Rauf was seen fighting with a spectator in a video that went viral, and his wife and a few other staff members had to physically break up the altercation.
Pakistan’s players were upset and dejected following their poor performance in the world cup, which led to the heated altercation. The Babar Azam-led team lost in the group stage and was unable to advance to the Super Eights.
Pakistan, who won the 2009 edition, had gone into the tournament hoping to win a second T20 world crown. But after being humiliated by the United States and India, their bitter adversaries, their campaign never really got off the ground.
Pakistan’s hopes were virtually dashed by a crushing defeat to arch-rivals India in the final over, despite their ability to recover with victories against Canada and Ireland. Pakistan’s premature elimination was validated when the Ireland vs. USA match was eventually called off.
Babar Azam was brought back to lead the Men in Green in white-ball cricket especially for this tournament, having resigned after the team lost the ODI World Cup the previous year. But even Azam’s strong leadership was unable to stop the T20 aftermath.
Recently, rumours have also circulated about head coach Gary Kirsten’s argument with the players questioning the togetherness and atmosphere on the team. After the team was eliminated from the main event, Kristen was blunt in his assessment of the squad’s inadequacies.
His remarks indicated that the Pakistani squad ought to deal with the problems in the future. Pakistan’s squad lacks cohesion. Although they refer to it as a team, it isn’t one. They don’t help one another; instead, they are divided into left and right groups. I’ve worked with a lot of teams, but this is the first time I’ve seen it happen,” Kirsten told TOI.
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