'Weak captaincy by Agha,' says former Pakistan cricketer after T20 World Cup exit

Former wicketkeeper-batsman Kamran Akmal has launched a blistering assessment of Pakistan's T20 World Cup campaign, suggesting the gulf between the national side and the world's top teams has become cavernous.

During a recent interview, Akmal expressed serious concerns over the team’s inability to adapt to the rapidly evolving demands of modern T20 cricket.

He highlighted the growing gap between Pakistan and the top international sides, stressing that other teams have modernised their approach while Pakistan continues to lag behind in key areas of the shortest format.

"Other teams have evolved to meet the demands of Twenty20 cricket, but neither our team nor our players meet those standards," Akmal told AFP.

"It is like other teams are playing on the moon and we are on earth. We only beat smaller teams but lose to top teams."

The tournament, which concluded in disappointment on Saturday, exposed alarming deficiencies within the Pakistan setup.

From captain Salman Agha, who faced mounting criticism over his suitability for the shortest format, to pedestrian scoring rates and a reliance on inadequate all-rounders, the campaign laid bare a national side lagging woefully behind the modern game.

The optimism generated by a pre-tournament 3-0 whitewash of Australia evaporated rapidly once the main event began.

Despite possessing a formidable quintet of spinners, apparently suited to Sri Lanka's turning tracks, Pakistan struggled from the outset, squeezing past the Netherlands by three wickets in the final over of their opening match.

Agha's captaincy came under particular scrutiny. Against India, he opted to field first — a decision that backfired spectacularly as Pakistan conceded 175 before slumping to a 61-run defeat.

The captain inexplicably withheld his chief weapon, mystery spinner Usman Tariq, until the 11th over, by which time Ishan Kishan had already constructed a match-defining 77.

"How on earth did you choose to field at a venue suited to batting first?" questioned former Pakistan player Basit Ali.

"After India scored 175, our batters failed to handle the pressure of a chase."

Agha repeated the error against England, delaying the reintroduction of Tariq after he had taken a wicket in his first over, allowing England captain Harry Brook to build a match-winning century.

"It was weak captaincy from Agha," said Akmal, who also took aim at head coach Mike Hesson and the selectors.

"We were also not helped by head coach Mike Hesson, who has an obsession with bits-and-pieces all-rounders who are neither complete bowlers nor good batters."