By Prakash Nair 
Karachi, August 15: Pakistan cricket has seen its share of bad days, but the battering in the Caribbean this week is being described by one of its fiercest former pacers, Shoaib Akhtar, as a wake-up call of historic proportions. After a 202-run thrashing by West Indies in the deciding ODI, Akhtar’s post-match comments were not the usual polite debrief. They were a demolition job.
Shoaib Akhtar Tears Into Batting Collapse
The 2–1 series defeat is West Indies’ first bilateral ODI win over Pakistan since 1991, a statistic that stings even before one considers the details of the decider Pakistan bundled out for 92 chasing a mammoth 295. Speaking to reporters and on his social media channels, Akhtar accused the national side of having “no intent, no collective spirit”, and being obsessed with personal milestones. “Everyone started playing for their averages The intent should be to win matches for your country,” he said, as quoted by News24.
It was a public indictment not just of technique, but of mentality. “We were never in the game,” he remarked flatly. The former speedster’s frustration was palpable, his tone less of a pundit and more of a patriot who felt betrayed.
Criticism Extends Beyond The Dressing Room
Interestingly enough, Akhtar did not lay the blame solely at the players’ feet. While he called the batting “technically fragile” on even mildly seaming tracks “Halka sa seam hota hai toh musibat pad jaati hai… Rawalpindi pitch lekar nahi ghoom sakte,” he told The Indian Express he also aimed fire at Pakistan’s management choices.
One name in particular came under scrutiny: Mike Hesson, Pakistan’s newly appointed head coach. Akhtar called him “a good T20 coach” but questioned his ODI credentials. “I don’t know what qualities he has for ODIs,” he said, adding that flawed selection policies and leadership strategies have been eroding the team’s competitiveness. “The problem is policy, not players,” he stressed, according to Cricket Pakistan.
The Technical Blind Spot
For what it’s worth, Akhtar’s critique of batting technique has echoed for years in Pakistan cricket circles. On flat tracks, Pakistan’s lineup can look menacing; introduce a hint of lateral movement, and the confidence evaporates. The Rawalpindi analogy was not just colorful it was a damning reminder that Pakistan’s domestic pitches have failed to prepare batters for global conditions.
Analysts note that Pakistan’s batting unit has become heavily dependent on conditions mirroring home advantage. When those conditions disappear, so does the scoreboard resistance. That fragility, Akhtar suggests, is as much about preparation as it is about willpower.
A Call For Systemic Change
Beyond the immediate sting of defeat, Akhtar’s comments tap into a deeper malaise. The 202-run loss was not an isolated off-day; it was a reflection, he believes, of years of drift in Pakistan’s ODI planning. Selection policies that ignore form in favor of reputation, coaches brought in without format-specific track records, and a lack of coherent batting strategy have combined into what he calls “predictable collapses”.
According to The Express Tribune, Akhtar stopped short of calling for individual sackings, but he urged the Pakistan Cricket Board to rethink its philosophy. “Change the mindset before you change the personnel,” he advised.
Looking Ahead: Tri-Series and Asia Cup Loom
The timing could hardly be worse for Pakistan. The team’s next assignment is a tri-series against Afghanistan and UAE, starting August 29, a curtain-raiser for the Asia Cup in September. Both tournaments will test not only skill but also whether the side has absorbed any lessons from the Caribbean debacle.
Akhtar’s challenge to the team is clear: abandon the comfort of playing for averages, embrace risk in pursuit of victory, and fix the systemic weaknesses that make Pakistan brittle on unfamiliar pitches. Whether his blunt words will be heeded or merely filed away as another “Rawalpindi Express” rant remains to be seen.
For now, the statistics speak louder than any soundbite: Pakistan have lost an ODI series to West Indies after 34 years, and the gap between the rhetoric of revival and the reality on the field seems wider than ever.
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- Prakash Nairhttps://hindustanherald.in/authors/prakash/
- Prakash Nairhttps://hindustanherald.in/authors/prakash/
