'No pool to turn to': Mohsin Naqvi laments lack of replacements in team after Bangladesh defeat

In the wake of the Green Shirts' embarrassing defeat in the first Test match against Bangladesh, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi has lamented that there were no replacement options in the team, stressing the lack of depth within the national side.

"The problem is the selection committee has no pool to turn to from which to select players," the PCB chief said, highlighting that there are no players to replace with the underperforming members of the team.

Additionally, Naqvi believes that the forthcoming Champions Cup in Pakistan will help make an impact at the international level.

The PCB chairman's comments came following Pakistan’s defeat against Bangladesh in the Test series held at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium from August 21 to 25.

Naqvi had previously spoken about the Pakistani side needing “major surgery” after their disastrous performance in the T20 World Cup, co-hosted by the USA and Caribbean.

"The Champions Cup will produce great talent, and we'll have records for the games that happen. For surgery, you need all the tools to perform it," he said, commenting on the team's recent performance against Bangladesh.

In this regard, the 45-year-old stated that the forthcoming Champions Cup would provide records better equipped to inform future selections.

"These 150 players that have been selected, 80% of it has been done by AI (Artificial intelligence), and 20% using humans. Nobody can challenge that. We gave about 20% weightage to our selection committee. If we replace a player with a worse one, you'll be the first to complain. We'll have records and we'll all be able to see transparently who deserves a place in the team," Naqvi further added.

He added that the tournament will end in September, the players not performing well will be immediately swapped.

It should be noted that the upcoming Champions Cup is a one-day tournament with Pakistan playing a three-match Test series against England.

With regards to the defeat against Bangladesh, PCB Chairman said, "Losing to Bangladesh is sad but the selection committee had given the team 17 players. If the coach or captain aren't playing some of them, that's their decision.

"The team management may have made a mistake, but that has nothing to do with the selection committee."

The second Test, which Pakistan must win to avoid a series defeat, will take place from August 30 to September 3 in Rawalpindi.

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