Pakistan team and head coach Wahab Riaz are facing criticism for their off-field activities following their disappointing performance in the Women’s T20 World Cup, in which the team crashed out in the first round.
Pakistan were among the first teams to be knocked out of the race to the semifinals following defeats to arch rivals India, Bangladesh, and South Africa in Group A of the 12-team tournament.
The criticism came after videos of their recreational activities during the tournament circulated on social media.
Former men’s team Test captain Rashid Latif said while everyone wanted to support women’s cricket and should extend their support, it was also a fact that women’s cricket was not moving forward.
“The Pakistan women’s team has been active for many years now and we need to wonder why we don’t see the required progress every time there is an ICC event,” Latif said on a podcast.
The videos showed players having dinner at a restaurant including senior player Aliya Riaz and her husband, Ali Younis, who is also the younger brother of former Pakistan captain Waqar Younis.
The videos have led to speculations about some players even skipping practice.
Former Test cricketer and ex women’s team head coach Kabir Khan questioned the inability of seasoned players to come good.
“These established players are not lacking in any facilities or international exposure,” he said.
“I just think our players are just not mentally or temperamentally strong enough to handle pressure and derail. You look at the way they lost low-scoring games to South Africa and Bangladesh in this World Cup.”
Before the Women’s T20 World Cup, Pakistan had lost to the West Indies and Ireland in a tri-series marred by bad weather.
Kabir said the current players must pay heed to the fact that they can be role models for younger generations.
“But if you keep on disappointing, it is women’s cricket that will not progress in Pakistan,” he said.
However, former Test pacer Saleem Jaffar said critics must also consider the differences in culture of men’s and women’s teams.
“For one, the women’s talent pool is not as vast as men’s cricket, and secondly, there are so many social and cultural taboos when it comes to coaching the women players,” Jaffar said.
“I give you an example as head coach. I couldn’t have a one-to-one discussion with any player without the manager being present in the conference room.”
“Male coaches have to avoid touching players in any way while coaching them in the nets. We can’t remain in the dressing room during matches because of privacy issues for the players, so all this makes it more difficult to coach the women players,” Jaffar added.
While Jaffar also touched upon the limited talent pool in Pakistan women’s cricket, despite an official from the national board explaining the steps PCB has taken, including a dedicated women’s wing.
“The women’s team gets the same facilities, perks, fees, (and other) benefits like the men’s team. If the men’s team travels in business class, so do the women players. There is no real discrimination,” the official said.
The official added that PCB has dedicated its equipped high performance centre in Karachi for women’s cricket with proper coaches, trainers, and chefs present round the clock.