Shan Masood crucified for Pakistan's series loss to Bangladesh, Ramiz Raja refers to him as a Coward
Table of Contents
Former Pakistan cricketer Ramiz Raja has slammed the captain Shan Masood for his poor performances with the bat during the Test series against Bangladesh. Raja was also critical of Pakistan's bowling attack and reckoned that it was not up to the Test level.
Shan Masood scored 105 runs across four innings during the series at an average of 26.25 with just one fifty to his name. The left-hander showed intent during each of his knocks but failed to get a big score under his belt.
Shan Masood's inability to score cost Pakistan as the batting line-up faced difficulties facing the Bangladeshi quicks.
Before the series, Shan Masood had stated that Pakistan would play a positive brand of cricket which would entertain the fans. However, his form was poor throughout the series.
Ramiz Raja slams Shan Masood for poor performance
While speaking on his YouTube channel, Raiz Raja blamed Pakistan captain Shan Masood for not contributing enough with the bat. Ramiz also lashed out at the bowling attack and called it a "first-class bowling attack."
"It’s the job of the leader to fight. Agreed he (Shan Masood) is a young captain, agreed the bowling attack was young, but he had picked up this bowling attack. It’s a first-class bowling attack, not a Test cricket bowling attack, "Ramiz Raja was quoted as saying by The Hindu.
"He has to answer about his performance. He is not scoring and the way Bangladesh squeezed, somebody has to be called for an explanation, senior players need to explain," he added.
Pakistan dropped two of their top fast bowlers Shaheen Afridi and Naseem Shah for the second Test match. The move did not quite work as Mir Hamza, Khurram Shahzad, and Mohammad Ali did not have much pace to trouble the Bangladesh batters on a spicy pitch.
"Lots of fans are disheartened" - Ramiz Raja
Ramiz Raja further argued why the fans should watch Pakistan's cricket team when they are performing so poorly. He claimed that the fans are disheartened after watching Pakistan cricket in such a state.
"Lots of fans are disheartened. Why does someone watch Pakistan’s Test cricket, because when you surf television channels and watch quality and classy cricket elsewhere, why should someone stop and watch how low can they (Pakistan cricketers) go," Ramiz said.
Mohammad Rizwan shines for Pakistan
The former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman further said that the whole structure of Pakistan cricket has been shaken and the players need to lift themselves mentally to get out of trouble.
"Only (Mohammad) Rizwan fights. The overall (cricket) structure is shaken and when the foundation is shaken, sponsors are shaken, fans are shaken and expectations are dead. They (players) have to take onus. This is the season to make a name. You have to get yourself up mentally and there are no excuses. … When there’s no blame game, only then you can go upward," Ramiz added.
Mohammad Rizwan fought the lone battle for Pakistan in the series with 294 runs in two Tests at an average of 98. The wicketkeeper-batter emerged as the top run-scorer of the series but could not prevent Pakistan from a 2-0 series whitewash.
Pakistan will next play England for a three-match Test series. It will be a stern test for the Men in Green who were whitewashed the last time England played a Test series in Pakistan. With the defeat to Bangladesh, they have slipped to eighth position in the WTC table as well as the ICC Test Rankings.
