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In this exclusive interview, Mohammad Haroon — former Head Coach of Norway, Austria, and the Qatar national team, and a former first-class cricketer in Pakistan — shares his expert analysis on the structural flaws in Pakistan cricket and the technical decline of Babar Azam. The ECB Level 4 coach dissects Pakistan's outdated T20 approach, the impact of player mismanagement, and why the current think tank is failing the team's best batter — and much more.
Key revelations include:
• Pakistan system critique: "Our domestic cricket standard is not good enough" — He notes that the shifts and changes in departmental cricket have significantly impacted the overall quality of the game. Without a stable and high-quality structure, he argues that players entering the national side simply cannot compete with the top-tier talent from countries like India or England.
• T20 physique gap: "Pakistan doesn't lack skill. They lack physique" — He suggests that Pakistan is using an outdated T20 strategy and trying to force a high strike rate on players who aren't naturally suited for it, rather than building a strategy around the specific strengths of the available talent pool. He argues that while Pakistani players do not lack skill, they lack the physicality and explosive fitness required for modern T20 cricket [
• Selection chaos: "You bring someone very easily and you drop someone very easily" — Haroon criticizes the "chop and change" policy, where players are brought in and dropped too quickly based on one or two innings, which destroys player confidence and trust.
• Babar's technical flaw: "He covers the off stump now. The same ball, he can't play in the cover area" — Babar has introduced a trigger movement where he covers the off-stump with his foot. This restricts his room, preventing him from playing his signature shots in the cover and midoff areas.
• Power-hitting damage: "Your bottom hand starts getting dominant" — Haroon emphasizes that Babar does not have "explosive fitness" and is not a natural power hitter. By trying to force sixes to meet public expectations, his bottom hand has become too dominant, ruining the flexibility and timing that made him world-class.
• Dressing room culture: "This is a big example of club-level thinking" — He mentions that players often become "too big for the game" once they achieve success and lack proper mentors to manage their egos. He cites a specific on-field argument between Usman Khan and Naseem Shah as an example of a lack of basic "club-level" tactical thinking.
Watch full interview with Saj here:
Key revelations include:
• Pakistan system critique: "Our domestic cricket standard is not good enough" — He notes that the shifts and changes in departmental cricket have significantly impacted the overall quality of the game. Without a stable and high-quality structure, he argues that players entering the national side simply cannot compete with the top-tier talent from countries like India or England.
• T20 physique gap: "Pakistan doesn't lack skill. They lack physique" — He suggests that Pakistan is using an outdated T20 strategy and trying to force a high strike rate on players who aren't naturally suited for it, rather than building a strategy around the specific strengths of the available talent pool. He argues that while Pakistani players do not lack skill, they lack the physicality and explosive fitness required for modern T20 cricket [
• Selection chaos: "You bring someone very easily and you drop someone very easily" — Haroon criticizes the "chop and change" policy, where players are brought in and dropped too quickly based on one or two innings, which destroys player confidence and trust.
• Babar's technical flaw: "He covers the off stump now. The same ball, he can't play in the cover area" — Babar has introduced a trigger movement where he covers the off-stump with his foot. This restricts his room, preventing him from playing his signature shots in the cover and midoff areas.
• Power-hitting damage: "Your bottom hand starts getting dominant" — Haroon emphasizes that Babar does not have "explosive fitness" and is not a natural power hitter. By trying to force sixes to meet public expectations, his bottom hand has become too dominant, ruining the flexibility and timing that made him world-class.
• Dressing room culture: "This is a big example of club-level thinking" — He mentions that players often become "too big for the game" once they achieve success and lack proper mentors to manage their egos. He cites a specific on-field argument between Usman Khan and Naseem Shah as an example of a lack of basic "club-level" tactical thinking.
Watch full interview with Saj here:
