Imran Khan blames favouritism for Pakistan’s poor performance

After Pakistan’s shocking elimination from the tournament in just five days, Imran Khan warned that cricket will be “destroyed” if decision-making roles are given to “favourites” rather than qualified individuals. His sister, Aleema Khan, conveyed his views to reporters, as quoted by Geo News.

Pakistan, which was hosting an ICC event for the first time in 29 years, suffered back-to-back losses against New Zealand and India. The team needed Bangladesh to beat New Zealand to stay in the competition, but the Kiwis won, sealing Pakistan’s fate.Imran also criticised PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi, accusing him of failing in every role he has held. “Whenever he comes to power, he makes a mess of it,” Aleema quoted Imran as saying, according to The Express Tribune.

Pakistan’s ongoing struggles in ICC events

Pakistan’s disappointing performance in global tournaments is not new. The team also failed to reach the knockouts in the last two ICC events.
In the 2024 T20 World Cup, Pakistan lost to the United States and India in the group stage, leading to an early exit.
In the 2023 ODI World Cup in India, Pakistan won only four out of nine matches, finishing fifth and missing out on the semi-finals.
With their final group match against Bangladesh now a dead rubber, Pakistan will once again have to reflect on what went wrong.

Najam Sethi blames Imran Khan for Pakistan’s decline

Former PCB chairman Najam Sethi, however, believes Pakistan’s decline started in 2019 under Imran Khan’s leadership.Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Sethi questioned how Pakistan, once ranked No. 1 in all formats and a former World Cup and Champions Trophy winner, had reached such a low point. He claimed the decline began when Imran overhauled the domestic cricket structure, replacing the old departmental system with an Australian-style hybrid model.

Sethi argued that “political interference” led to instability, with frequent changes in selectors, coaches, and management. He also blamed power struggles among players and poor decision-making within the PCB for Pakistan’s downfall.

A longstanding power struggle

Imran Khan’s changes to Pakistan cricket started when he became Prime Minister. In 2019, he replaced the traditional domestic structure with a six-team first-class system. He also appointed Ramiz Raja as PCB chairman in 2021 after Ehsan Mani stepped down. However, after Imran’s government fell in 2022, Ramiz was removed and replaced by Sethi.

Inputs from agencies