'Players Laughing in Dressing room, No Seriousness': Ex-keeper Says Pakistan Played Worse Than Club Cricketers vs BAN

Former wicketkeeper batter Kamran Akmal had a meltdown after Pakistan’s shocking loss to Bangladesh in the opening Test. The visitors registered their first-ever win over Pakistan in Test cricket, taking an unassailable 1-0 lead in the 2-match series. The shocking defeat on home turf led to an outburst from former cricketers of the country while Akmal also joined the bandwagon.

The former wicketkeeper-batter took to his YouTube channel and lashed out at Shan Masood & Co for their poor performance.

“Aapne pichle 5 saalon se kuch nahi seekha [You haven’t learned anything in the last 5 years],” the retired wicketkeeper said. He further claimed that this humiliating loss put a stain on Pakistan Cricket as it would never be forgotten.

“Our batters were playing like club cricketers. Sorry, not even club cricketers play this way. The approach was poor. The players were laughing in the dressing room. There is no seriousness because they will not be questioned. It looked like they were playing for fun.”

Kamran Akmal also emphasized how Mohammad Rizwan’s innings was all the fight Pakistan had in the opening Test. He claimed that if the veteran batter hadn’t stepped for the host side, they would have lost the fixture by an innings.

“You lost to Zimbabwe. Last year, you were eliminated from the Asia Cup. You were humiliated in the T20 World Cup,” he said. The retired wicketkeeper added that the current team has made an absolute mockery of Pakistan cricket globally.

While Akmal was frustrated with Pakistan’s performances, he congratulated Bangladesh on a historic triumph.

“Bangladesh had a difficult time but their batters scored runs. They had to save the match and not only they did do just that but also won the fixture. They also exposed Pakistan cricket.”

The Rawalpindi Test began with Bangladesh winning the toss and electing to field first. Pakistan notched 448 runs at the loss of six wickets in the first innings before declaring. A massive 191-run knock from Mushfiqur Rahim enabled Bangladesh to take the lead with a tally of 565 runs. The visitors then curbed Pakistan at 146 before racking up an unbeaten 30 runs in the second innings to win the match.

Pakistan and Bangladesh will next face off on August 30 in the second fixture of their series. The venue will be the same.