Captain alone should not be blamed for a defeat, urges Misbah-ul-Haq - Cricket News Update
Pakistan’s ODI and Test skipper http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Misbah-ul-Haq-c1972, on Tuesday lashed out at his critics saying cricket is a team game and the captain alone cannot be blamed for a defeat.
"One thing should be clear that the captain alone is not responsible for a defeat or victory," said Misbah, who was appointed as http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Pakistan-c755’s Test skipper in 2010.
Misbah has been under immense criticism since Pakistan’s 2-1 ODI series loss to http://www.senore.com/Cricket/United-Arab-Emirates-c3033. The 38-year-old right-handed middle-order batsman is not only being criticised for his captaincy tactics, but also for his tranquillity while batting, regardless of the match situation.
The 38-year-old middle-order batsman, who is no more part of the national T20 squad, was given the reins of side in the limited-overs format in May last year, after http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Shahid-Afridi-c2482 was sacked by the board following a media outburst.
Misbah led the side exceptionally in the ODIs as well as in T20Is in 2011. However, the slump of the team started with a 0-4 ODI series whitewash at the hands of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sri-Lanka-c758 and 1-2 at the hands of Australia – and the former players and pundits have started suggesting Misbah to step down as the ODI skipper.
Likewise, the T20 skipper of Pakistan http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Mohammad-Hafeez-c76898 also came under fire after the team lost to the Aussies by 94 runs in the third and final T20 International, at Dubai on Monday. Chasing an intimidating 169-run target, the Men in Green fell for their lowest T20 total (74), slumping to their biggest defeat in the history of the shortest format of the game.
While speaking to media reporters in Lahore, on Tuesday, the right-hander said that the culture of blaming the captain for each and every defeat should change now, insisting that cricket is a team game, where all the eleven players contribute in a win or loss.
"One individual's bad performance or mistake should not be singled out, the entire team must be focused upon ... When the team wins it gets the credit and this should also be the case when we lose a match," said Misbah.
"In cricket we need to learn from any situation as we have quality players in batting and bowling. It is all in the mind and nothing else," the right-hander concluded.
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