Mohammad Hafeez takes a sly dig at PCB for preferring 'unpolished' youth over experience
Mohammad Hafeez has questioned the Pakistan Cricket Board's selection process after the team's defeat in the first Test against New Zealand. In Hafeez's view, the board should groom the players at the domestic level before naming them in the Test squad.
The Pakistan cricket team suffered a 101-run defeat in the first Test against New Zealand at Bay Oval. Mohammad Hafeez believes inexperience was a key reason behind the visitors' failure to the Blackcaps. He shared his views on the team's loss via a tweet.
Mohammad Hafeez seemingly took a jibe at the PCB because of the team's inexperienced fast bowling lineup. While Shaheen Shah Afridi has played only 18 first-class matches, while his fast bowling partner Naseem Shah is 17 years old.
It is pertinent to note Afridi was the pick of the Pakistani bowlers in the first innings, while Shah was the most successful bowler in the second innings. Even Faheem Ashraf, who is relatively inexperienced, took one wicket and aggregated 110 runs.
Interestingly, Abid Ali and Shan Masood, who have played over 100 first-class matches each, failed to open their accounts in the second innings. Thus, not many could understand the reason behind Hafeez's tweet.
International stage is for the product to perform: Mohammad Hafeez
Mohammad Hafeez opined it was important for any talented player to polish his skills at the domestic level before representing the country at the international level. The veteran all-rounder, who has donned the whites 55 times for the Pakistan cricket team, wrote on the micro-blogging platform:
"International stage is for the Product to perform. Talent needs to be Groomed,Polished at domestic & academy level until they become a PRODUCT to represent at National level. If it make sense to someone #MasoomanaAdvice."