"Gary Kirsten needs to get hold of"- Michael Vaughan absolutely destroys Babar Azam and Pakistan.
Pakistan’s dismal T20 World Cup 2024 campaign ended on a positive note with a win over Ireland on Sunday (June 17). The Men in Green struggled throughout the group stage and eventually failed to qualify for the Super Eight stage for the first time in the history of the tournament.
Babar Azam & Co. lost their opening fixture to the USA in the Super Over. If that wasn’t enough, Pakistan suffered a narrow defeat to India in their next game, leaving their fate in other teams’ hands.
But the luck ran out for the Green Brigade as they were eliminated from the tournament after the game between the USA and Ireland was washed out due to bad weather conditions in Florida.
‘I don’t think they have enough power’ - Michael Vaughan
Former England captain slammed Pakistan after their poor show in the T20 World Cup 2024. While speaking on Cricbuzz after Pakistan’s win over Ireland, Vaughan questioned Pakistan’s preparations for the tournament and felt that the team didn’t have enough power as the other teams.
“I just don’t think they are a great team, look at the preparations and results. They hardly go on in a running run, and they played three series against the same team (New Zealand), which is not good. Not being disrespectful, I just look at the way Pakistan play T20 cricket, compared to some other teams, I don’t think they have enough power,” Vaughan stated.
The former England batter also questioned the six-hitting ability of Pakistan’s captain Babar Azam.
“I think they have got some half-decent seam bowlers, but they lack world-class spinners, which is unheard really in Pakistan. If you look at their batting, how many of that Pakistan batting line-up do you look at and you go destructive powerful players? Babar is a wonderful player, but is he a big six-hitter? Other than Fakhar Zaman, I don’t think they have got the power,” he added.
Gary Kirsten's role in Pakistan cricket
Vaughan felt the need for power in modern-day T20 cricket and believed that Pakistan's head coach needed to get some powerful players on the side.
“You know, Gary Kirsten needs to get the power to have the team he wants to play, and whether it’s to get rid of some of the senior players to start all over again, maybe that’s one option. He is someone who loves to get the best out of people. I think Gary is the perfect kind of person at the minute for Pakistan cricket, but they just need some consistency,” Vaughan added.
Pakistan went on to win their final two games against Canada and Ireland but those victories weren’t enough to secure their qualification for the Super Eight. They finished third in Group A with 4 points, behind India and USA. India finished on top of Group A with 7 points while the USA finished second with 5 points to their name.
