PAK vs SA: Pakistan Players Disappointed With PCB Due To Lack Of Support During World Cup - Reports

Babar Azam and his teammates are reportedly disappointed over the lack of support they have received from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) during the ongoing ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 in India.

Things have not gone well for Pakistan so far in the competition. Visiting India for the first time since 2016, the Men in Green began their World Cup campaign with 2 wins before suffering three losses in a row. The losses have pretty much derailed their World Cup campaign and they need nothing less than a miracle to make it to the semi-finals for the first time since 2011.

As the players struggled on the field, rumors of unrest in the dressing room also started doing the rounds. The reports from Pakistani media suggested that the team was divided into two groups. While captain Babar is leading one group, fast-bowler Shaheen Afridi is leading the other one. The rumors were so strong that the PCB had to release a statement to deny them.

Pakistan players unhappy with the PCB:

Amidst all these, the latest reports from Pakistan suggest that the players are not happy with the lack of support from the PCB. According to a report in Cricket Pakistan, the players have complained that the PCB have thrown them under the bus. The players have claimed that they have not received the kind of support they needed during the tough times.

The senior players feel that the PCB has left them all alone to face all the criticism for their poor display in the World Cup. The players are also not happy with the PCB releasing a statement over false reports of a rift in the team.

“We only wanted the right facts to come out. Everyone discusses their concerns honestly in meetings, and differences of opinion do arise, but there has never been a fight,” an unnamed player told the news outlet.

Speaking further, the player defended under-pressure Babar too, saying that the captain does not make the decisions alone but has been taking all the blame and the criticism.

“It seems like if the team doesn’t reach the semi-finals, the players will be held responsible. We are now being presented as if we fought with the board over contracts and didn’t prepare for the World Cup despite being well-prepared when we came to India. Unfortunately, favorable results haven’t been achieved so far,” the player said.

Pakistan’s hopes of making it to the semifinal are hanging by a thread. They are presently at the sixth spot in the points table with 2 wins and 3 defeats.