ODI series defeat against England is an eye opener: Waqar Younis

Waqar Younis called on the need for overhauling the national cricket academy in Lahore and said it should be handed over to foreign coaches.

Pakistan’s under-fire head coach Waqar Younis said that the limited overs series defeats to England in the UAE has come as a eye opener for the national team management and the Pakistan cricket board.

The former fast bowler also felt that the gap between Pakistan’s domestic cricket and international cricket had become obvious and there was a need to invest more into the game in Pakistan.

“I am startled at the standard of cricket at display and the thing that has bothered me the most is that these are our best performers, but unfortunately they were found out,” he told the “Express Tribune” newspaper in an interview in Dubai.

He also called on the need for overhauling the national cricket academy in Lahore and said it should be handed over to foreign coaches who can implement programs.

“I’ll reiterate, the PCB needs to invest in the product and the NCA is the base camp. We need foreign coaches there, even if they charge a hefty amount,” he added.

“The top domestic performers must be groomed according to international standards. If we don’t take the necessary steps, then believe me when I say this: we will plummet even further.”

Waqar also said he was baffled by the decision of senior batsman Younis Khan to announce his retirement from ODIs before the first match against England.

Younis’ inclusion in the ODI squad after a eight month gap generated much debate with the media highlighting that Waqar didn’t want him in the limited overs side.

“I sat down with Younus and asked him to pick a number from one to 11 in the batting order of his own preference and he said he wanted to bat at four. I told him that’s fine and that he will play all four matches,” Waqar said.

“Next thing we know he announced his retirement, so I’m not sure what his reasons for doing so are.”

Waqar also said the tour to England next year was very important for Pakistan cricket.

He said there was a need to study the English game to be better suited to face their opponents.

But asked about his contract which expires next April before the tour Waqar remained unclear.

“I am not sure if I’ll be around for the tour [of England] or not, but the fact is that we need rigorous preparations for the Test series.

“We need to prepare practice wickets that offer seam and bounce; perhaps we need to use English balls to fine tune. England are very good at home and would be gunning to avenge the Test defeat,” he stated.