Dinesh Karthik expresses alarm over Pakistan's Test cricket struggles

Former India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik has criticised Pakistan’s performance in the England Test series, questioning the team’s competitiveness and expressing concern over the frequent changes to its playing and coaching setup.

In a recent video shared on his social media account, Karthik, who was performing commentary duties, said Pakistan looked “very ordinary” during the first two Tests of the series and struggled to compete against England.

“When I covered the England vs Pakistan Test series, I felt the Pakistan team was very ordinary. In the first two Tests, they did not even play 90 overs across their two innings in a match. The wickets were spicy and it was not easy, but they were certainly not pitches where you could not play 90 overs across both innings. I do not think that is good enough,” Karthik said.

Karthik also backed former England captain Nasser Hussain’s criticism of Pakistan’s selection decisions, questioning the rationale behind making several changes to the squad and support staff during the series.

“I think what they are doing is a disservice to Test cricket, as Nasser Hussain said, and I quite agree with him. They made seven changes and also changed the support staff. In the last Test match, they competed. Somebody like Razaullah, who actually did well in the Test, makes you wonder why he was not there from the start. What is happening with the selection process?” he questioned.

The 41-year-old also raised concerns over the quality of players in Pakistan’s current Test setup while pointing to the changes in captaincy and coaching staff.

“What kind of players are they having? There has been a change in captaincy and a change in coaches. Everything looks unsettled, and the performances are quite clearly showing that. When they played against England, it did not feel like they could compete and, genuinely, I do not think they can compete against a lot of Test-playing nations at this point, which is sad,” he stated.

Karthik further expressed disappointment over Pakistan’s decline in Test cricket, stressing that the team was performing well below its potential despite its rich history in the format.

“They have a rich heritage and legacy in Test cricket, but they are playing nowhere close to what they are capable of. Having been part of it, I must say it looks alarming. I hope the right people are taking notice and doing what is required to bring them back up to speed, because at this point, things do not look great,” he concluded.

Pakistan endured heavy defeats in the first two Tests of the series, suffering an innings and 103-run loss at Headingley before losing the Lord’s Test by 194 runs.

Following the defeats, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) released seven players from the squad and brought in five uncapped players in Razaullah, Arafat Minhas, Imran Randhawa, Mohammad Imran Junior and Saad Baig. Saim Ayub and Abdullah Fazal also returned to the squad.

The coaching setup was also reshuffled, with red-ball coaches Sarfaraz Ahmed and Umar Gul released and replaced by white-ball coaches Mike Hesson and Ashley Noffke.

However, Hesson’s first assignment as red-ball coach fell short of expectations as England secured an eight-wicket victory at Edgbaston after successfully chasing a 130-run target.

The major positive for Pakistan was Razaullah’s impressive Test debut. The pacer regularly crossed 140kph, claimed four wickets, including that of Joe Root, and scored a quickfire 81 off 63 balls, with four fours and nine sixes.