Inzamam-ul-Haq responds to Hafeez’s remarks on '90s players'

Former Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq has addressed the ongoing controversy surrounding all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez’s comments about the legacy of Pakistan’s cricketers from the 1990s.

Hafeez, who faced significant backlash, later clarified that his statements had been misrepresented by certain media outlets and were not intended as a personal attack on any former cricketer.

His remarks came after Pakistan’s disappointing performance in the 2025 Champions Trophy, where they were eliminated following consecutive group-stage defeats against New Zealand and India. A washed-out fixture against Bangladesh sealed their exit.

“I am a big admirer of the cricketers from the 1990s, but when we talk about their legacy, it’s clear they didn’t bring home an ICC trophy. They were part of the World Cups in 1996, 1999, and 2003, and despite our strong performances, we lost each time. In fact, we only made it to the 1999 final, and that loss was quite heavy,” Hafeez said.

“They were megastars as players, but they couldn’t inspire us by winning an ICC event. After that, we endured a tough phase, losing the 2007 T20 World Cup final. However, in 2009, under Younis Khan’s leadership, we finally secured a title, providing inspiration for the next generation,” he added.

During a recent media interaction, Inzamam strongly disagreed with Hafeez’s perspective, highlighting the contributions of 1990s players to Pakistan cricket.

"If we remove the ’90s cricketers from Pakistan cricket, there won’t be much left. Whatever we won after the ’90s was also achieved by players from that era. We won the ’92 World Cup, and its captain and key performers were all from the ’90s," Inzamam said.

He further emphasized, “No one should make such statements. I didn’t hear the remarks live, so I don’t know the exact context. However, everyone knows the contributions of the 90s cricketers.”

Following the backlash, Hafeez took to social media to clarify his stance, stating that his remarks were solely about Pakistan’s inability to win ICC tournaments during that period and not directed at any individual player.

“Some media houses are misrepresenting the actual context. The discussion was about teams winning ICC events to inspire future generations,” Hafeez tweeted.

“I simply pointed out that despite their immense cricketing talent, Pakistan’s greats couldn’t secure ICC titles post-1992 in 1996, 1999, and 2003. It was never meant as personal criticism of any individual player,” he added.