Tag: Muhammad Hafeez

  • Sajid, Noman’s performance exposed many faces: M Hafeez

    Sajid, Noman’s performance exposed many faces: M Hafeez

    Former Pakistani captain Mohammad Hafeez has congratulated the team on their victory in the Test series against England but has also posted a controversial message.

    The former Test player congratulated the Pakistani team for winning a home series after more than three years. He wrote on X (formerly Twitter): “The impressive performances of Sajid Khan and Noman Ali played a crucial role in Pakistan’s victory over England in the home series after more than three years. More importantly, their performances have exposed many faces.”

    After the first Test loss to England, Mohammad Hafeez had heavily criticized the national team, saying they were searching for a win on home ground.

    However, following the series win, Hafeez wrote on social media, “Credit goes to the new selectors who took the responsibility of making tough decisions, well done.”

    In another tweet, Mohammad Hafeez wrote, “Special note: Noman Ali, Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Agha, Saud Shakeel, Kamran Ghulam, and Shan Masood are all top performers at the domestic level.”

    Pakistan defeated England 2-1 in the three-match Test series, winning the third Test by nine wickets.

  • Selection committee picked weak team with big names: Muhammad Hafeez

    Former cricket captain and director Muhammad Hafeez has lashed out at the selection committee, alleging that they chose a weak team with big names.

    Talking to Express News, Hafeez criticized the current selection committee and said, “The selection committee has tried to strengthen the team by calling the players sitting at home.”

    Talking about Babar Azam’s captaincy he said, “Babar was removed from the captaincy for some reason but then made captain again. When Babar was the captain, he was accused of favoring every group.”

    He said, “Shaheen Shah Afridi was removed from the captaincy within two months without any solid reason. I brought a four-year plan to improve the team, but I was removed from the post after two months.”

    Muhammad Hafeez and former chairman PCB Ramiz Raja criticised Muhammad Amir’s return to the national team on several occasions, while selection committee member Wahab Riaz also termed the former cricketer’s statement as his personal opinion.

  • RIP domestic cricket’ Muhammad Hafeez reaction on national T20 squad

    RIP domestic cricket’ Muhammad Hafeez reaction on national T20 squad

    Former captain Muhammad Hafeez reacted to the announcement of the 17-member squad of the national team for the Pakistan New Zealand T20 series.

    The 17-member squad for the national team was announced today, with the return of recently retired cricketers Mohammad Amir and Imad Wasim.

    However, Mohammad Hafeez is not happy with the announcement of the national team for the series against New Zealand.

    Muhammad Hafeez wrote ‘X’ “Rest in peace domestic cricket.”

    Former cricketer Muhammad Hafeez parted ways with the director of the national team, Hafeez wanted to meet with PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi to present a report on the defeat in the tour of Australia and New Zealand, but Naqvi did not have time to meet Hafeez.

    According to reports, PCB was not interested in working with Muhammad Hafeez due to which the two decided to part ways.

  • Muhammad Hafeez’s valuable gifts stolen on return from America

    Muhammad Hafeez’s valuable gifts stolen on return from America

    Pakistan cricket team former captain Mohammad Hafeez’s valuable gifts stolen on his return home from America.

    Muhammad Hafeez issued a statement X stating, “On March 26, my journey from New York to Lahore began. When I got my belongings on reaching home from America, my suitcase was damaged and my valuables and gifts were stolen from my bag.”

    He said, “I have filed a complaint at Lahore Airport, so far I have not received any response regarding my luggage.”

    Mohammad Hafeez also expressed his anger over the poor service of the airline.

  • Mohammad Hafeez parts ways with Pakistan Cricket Board

    Mohammad Hafeez parts ways with Pakistan Cricket Board

    Muhammad Hafeez’s role as Director of Cricket has ended after an administrative change in the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).

    According to the sources of Geo News, Muhammad Hafeez has been given a clear message by the board’s top officials that his services will not be required in the near future.

    The former batsman left for the Australia tour in December 2023 as director of cricket, but before the New Zealand tour was over, PCB management committee chief Zaka Ashraf resigned from his post.

    The manner in which Hafeez operated under Zaka Ashraf’s chairmanship was a cause of great concern to some board officials, the first practical example of which was seen at the end of the tour, when he met Acting Chairman PCB.

    After that, Hafeez was not given a platform on the detailed media briefing of the tour, after which it was reported that Chief Executive Salman Naseer and International Director Usman Wahla had developed reservations. The latest escalation in the situation came when, according to reports, Hafeez could not meet the new Chairman PCB Mohsin Raza Naqvi despite efforts to see him.

    After repeatedly contacting Nabila and Director Media Alia Rashid in the Chairman’s office, he could not get an encouraging response. Now he has received a clear message from Chief Executive Salman Naseer that the chairman does not seem willing to give him more time as a director and wants to have a foreign coaching staff with a different mindset.

  • PCB stops Muhammad Hafeez from holding press conference

    PCB stops Muhammad Hafeez from holding press conference

    After allowing team director Muhammad Hafeez to hold a press conference on his return home from Australia, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has barred him from holding a media talk.

    Sources say that the authorities wanted to protect Hafeez and PCB from conflict.

    According to Geo News sources, Chief Operating Officer Salman Naseer Muhammad is not in favour of Hafeez’s press conference, while a few board officials also disagree with the decision. International Director Usman Wahla’s No Objection Certificate (NOC) policy is also different in the board.

    Sources say that Usman Wahla did not give an NOC for Bangladesh League to Mohammad Haris, while it gave a third NOC to Azam Khan for ILT20.

    Shadab Khan is fit to play for Pakistan and for the ILT20 league, but board officials are disagreeing with bringing Muhammad Hafeez in front the media to discuss the matter.

    Muhammad Hafeez thinks that PCB cannot give priority to league cricket.

    According to sources, Hafeez is not happy with the Pakistani media, especially social media. He wanted to remove the one-sidedness and speculations regarding the tour of Australia and New Zealand and clear himself by explaining the reasons for the failure.

    Muhammad Hafeez did not tweet considering the extension of the contract or not.

    In his message on social media, Muhammad Hafeez said that cricket is his passion and the most important strength in life. “False news spread by professionals on social media cannot reduce it,” he said.

  • Hafeez alleges players were focused on foreign leagues during Australia and New Zealand tours

    Hafeez alleges players were focused on foreign leagues during Australia and New Zealand tours

    Former Pakistan Cricket Team Director Muhammad Hafeez has alleged that national players were not fully focused on the game during the tour of Australia and New Zealand, as they were worried about different leagues.

    According to Geo News sources, Muhammad Hafeez, who was the team director of Pakistan on the tour of Australia and New Zealand, met with the Acting Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), Shah Khawar, to whom he explained the reasons for the defeat and also discussed the improvement of cricket.

    Sources say that Hafeez has told the head of the board that the national players in Australia and New Zealand were not fully focused on the game, there too they were worried about different leagues.

    According to sources, Hafeez also met PCB COO Salman Naseer separately. It should be noted that Hafeez’s contract as team director has expired.

    Hafeez also expressed his desire to renew the agreement, on which he was told that the decision is possible only after the consultation of inter-provincial coordination of ministries.

    It should be remembered that Pakistan faced a whitewash in the Test series during Australia’s tour, while the national team lost 1-4 in the T20 series against New Zealand

  • Muhammad Hafeez’s strict attitude has made senior players unhappy

    Muhammad Hafeez’s strict attitude has made senior players unhappy

    Senior players of Pakistan cricket are upset and unhappy with the strict behavior of team director, Muhammad Hafeez.

    Tension has erupted between team management and the players in New Zealand over the issue of the No Objections Certificate (NOC), Geo sources have said.

    After losing three Tests in Australia, the Pakistan team has also been defeated in both T20 Internationals in New Zealand.

    Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has given unlimited powers to Hafeez after he replaced Mickey Arthur as director, putting him at the forefront of many decisions in domestic cricket.

    Sources say that some players including Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shadab Khan, and Azam Khan had asked for and were issued NOCs for the expensive league ILT Twenty20 in Dubai. Still, some of the big cricketers asked for the NOC for the Bangladesh Premier League but Mohammad Hafeez is hesitant, which threatens his contracts.

    Senior players are also not happy with long team meetings. Players say that they are interfering and interrupting unnecessarily which is spoiling the atmosphere of the team.

    When Geo News tried to get a response from the Pakistan team management and PCB, they indicated that everything was fine.

    Team sources say that although right now tension is in the initial stage, but going forward, things may become more bitter.

    The final of the ILT Twenty will be played on February 17, the same day as the opening match of the Pakistan Super League. Retired player Mohammad Amir has been issued NOC for ILT Twenty20.

  • ‘No doubt the guys can beat Australia in Australia’; Social media reacts to Hafeez’s statement

    ‘No doubt the guys can beat Australia in Australia’; Social media reacts to Hafeez’s statement

    During a press conference held after Pakistan lost the Perth Test, the Director of the team, Mohammad Hafee, said, “The Pakistan team is fully capable of making a comeback and no doubt the guys can beat Australia in Australia”.

    Hafeez said, “Pakistan’s batting unit did not perform well. Shaheen Afridi and Babar Azam alone are not responsible for good performance, but the domestic players who were given a chance also performed well.”

    The Pakistan Cricket Team Director also said that the conditions in Perth were good thanks to Cricket Australia, providing equal opportunities for batsmen and bowlers.

    He said that the Pakistan team can beat any team in any conditions. After this statement social media users started trolling Muhammad Hafeez.

    Here are the reactions on social media:

  • PCB announces men’s central contract list for 2021-22

    PCB announces men’s central contract list for 2021-22

    The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has announced the central contracts for the men’s national cricket team. Hassan Ali and Mohammad Rizwan have been promoted to category A, while Captain Babar Azam and Shaheen Shah Afridi retained their positions in the ‘A’ category.

    Azhar Ali, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Fawad Alam, Shadab Khan and Yasir Shah are included in category-B.

    The players included in category C are: Abid Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Nawaz, Nauman Ali and Sarfaraz Ahmed.

    Imran Butt, Shahnawaz Dahani and Usman Qadir have been placed in Emerging Category.

    According to the press release issued by the PCB, the list has been finalised by the panel that comprised Director-International Cricket, Zakir Khan, chief selector Muhammad Wasim and Director-High Performance, Nadeem Khan, who also consulted head coach Misbah-ul-Haq and captain Babar Azam as part of the process. The provisional list was then shared with Chief Executive Wasim Khan, before it was approved by PCB Chairman Ehsan Mani.

    “Selecting 20 players amongst a big pool of quality cricketers is always a challenging task. I would like to thank the panel for their diligent work in selecting the 2021-22 central contract list against an agreed criteria,” PCB Chief Executive Wasim Khan said in a statement.

    “In the new list, we have seen eight new players emerge who have now gained central contracts. Due to the competitive nature of the central contract system, nine players who had contracts in 2020-21 have sadly missed out on this occasion. The door remains firmly open for these players and they will continue to remain in the plans of the selectors.”

    The 12-month contracts will run from July 1, 2021 to June 30, 2022.