Foreign coaches cannot improve Pakistan cricket: Sarfraz Nawaz

[MenInG]

LAHORE: Former Test pacer Sarfraz Nawaz on Friday urged the Pakistan Cricket Board not to hire any foreign coaches for the national team.

The former Test pacer also wants the PCB to allow the departmental teams to continue playing at least in the national one-day and T20 events, if not in the first-class event of Quaid-i-Azam Trophy.

Talking to Dawn on Friday, Sarfraz said due to security concerns foreign coaches seldom stay in Pakistan for longer duration which is not helpful for the country.

“Foreign coaches do not remain in Pakistan for longer periods. And furthermore they are not very much interested in extensively travelling to different cities for witnessing talent players featuring in domestic cricket,” the 70-year-old Sarfraz noted.

“Therefore, no foreign coach can serve the purpose of improving Pakistan cricket, which can be achieved only by keeping permanent focus [on job]. For this reason, I believe talented Pakistanis should be hired as head coach, and batting, bowling and fielding coaches.”

Sarfraz backed leg-spin maestro Abdul Qadir to be the next chief selector while naming ex-Test paceman Aaqib Javed as a suitable choice for the post of bowling coach, if he quit Lahore Qalandars.

Sarfraz hailed PCB’s decision of appointing Misbah-ul-Haq as camp commandant of the pre-season training camp and urged the Board to give the ex-Pakistan skipper a permanent role also with the national team. “Misbah’s appointment as camp commandant seems he might be the next head coach [of national team].”

Meanwhile, Sarfraz also urged the PCB not to totally bar departmental cricket, and suggested to allow them to continue to play the national one-day and T20 events if not the first-class event of the Quaid-i-Azam Trophy.

“A good number of professional cricketers and their support staff had to lose their jobs from their respective departments, which will only result in [further] unemployment,” lamented Sarfraz who played 55 Tests and 45 ODIs for Pakistan between 1969 and 1984.

“Those professional cricketers after losing their job in departments, then ultimately turn to represent their provincial and city teams, not only burden them but also [indirectly] block the way of fresh talented players by occupying most of the places,” the ex-pacer highlighted.

According to the new PCB constitution approved recently, the 32 departments — eight competing in domestic first-class cricket and remaining 24 in Grade-II — will not be eligible to feature in the country’s domestic game. Besides the departments instead of 16 regional teams, only six provincial teams will comprise domestic circuit.

As per an estimate, in implementing the new domestic cricket set-up around 200 coaches, trainers and groundsmen plus approximately 1,000 cricketers could be dismissed from their services.

And it would not be an easy job for the PCB to adjust those technical staff in provincial or city teams as the move may put a huge financial burden on it.

https://www.dawn.com/news/1499858/foreign-coaches-cannot-improve-pakistan-cricket-sarfraz-nawaz

 

[Muhammad Saad]

But he can right?

 

[MenInG]

Thankfully not mentioned their paycheques!

 

[MenInG]

ISLAMABAD: The Metropolitan Corporation Islamabad (MCI) has taken over a cricket academy run by legendary test cricketer Sarfraz Nawaz, who is currently undergoing cardiac treatment at a London hospital.

The MCI sealed the offices and main doors of the academy, which was being run as a non-profit entity, on Friday. It said the academy was taken over because its contract had expired and it was being used for commercial purposes.

Located in F-7, the academy was allocated to Mr Nawaz by the Capital Development Authority’s (CDA) sports directorate more than a decade ago. That directorate was devolved to the MCI after the local government was formed in 2016.

Mr Nawaz, who has been in London for the last year for medical treatment, denied the MCI’s claim, saying the academy was meant for public and that there was no question of commercial activity.

“I was not served any notice. There is no question of commercial activity, as my academy has a small space where matches cannot be held. They got the chance to occupy the academy since I was out of the country,” he told Dawn over the phone from London on Sunday.

Claims academy was taken over because its contract expired and it was used for commercial purposes

He said it appeared that there was a ‘mafia’ operating in the Islamabad sports circle that wanted to control cricket grounds and academies to run them for its own interests.

He said that his staff had been operating the academy in his absence, adding that he has invested millions of rupees to provide young cricketers training opportunities. He said he has sent his staff cheques from London to meet the expenses of the academy, proof of which is available with his bank.

Mr Nawaz appealed to Prime Minister Imran Khan to look into why his academy had been made a target.

Mian Babar Qayoom, who was running the academy on Mr Nawaz’ behalf, said that he spent millions of rupees to establish the academy. He said Mr Nawaz had been paying the academy’s utility bills and other expenses out of his own pocket when the MCI suddenly sealed the building.

Mr Qayoom and other staffers said there was no question that the academy was being used on a commercial basis, and asked the MCI to bring forward any evidence to this effect.

Many cricket grounds belonging to the MCI are being run by private individuals but the MCI has been reluctant to take back control of them.

The academy is well maintained, with lush green grass and three practice nets and other equipment. There is an MCI football ground adjacent to the academy that appears overgrown and abandoned.

MCI Sports Officer Chaudhry Shahzad told Dawn the MCI has decided to take control of all public grounds and academies that are being run by individuals.

He said there were reports that the academy was being operated for commercial purposes while its contract had already expired several years ago.

When asked, he said notices were also served.

“We completed all legal formalities before sealing the academy,” Mr Shahzad said, adding that: “Although we served notices, the contract clearly mentioned that the authority can take over its grounds and academies even without serving notices.”

He said public grounds and academies built on state land are meant for the public and no one can charge fees for their use.

A staffer of Mr Nawaz’ said that if the MCI is serious about taking control of all grounds and academies it should have taken over grounds before moving towards the academy of a legendary test cricket who had served Pakistan for decades.

“Suppose there was any issue between MCI and academy staffers, the MCI should at least wait for the test cricketer’s return to the country. This action is an insult to the stalwart. We know no action will be taken against others; right in front of the mayor’s house there is the Shalimar Cricket Ground on Margalla Road, which is being run by private person.. Similarly, many other grounds are in the possession of private people and associations, but Sarfraz Nawaz’ academy was singled out,” he said.

https://www.dawn.com/news/1501681/mci-seals-former-test-cricketers-academy

 

[Rellu_Katta]

the moment he mentioned Abdul Qadir and Aaqib, i stopped reading the article lol ... Aqib is just not good enough and Abdul Qadir is a a joker who will do anything to get his son-in-law into the team... i had lot of respect for Ab Qadir but he has gone to new low after low just to rant abt his son-in-law Umar Akmal ...

 

[Abdullah719]

Zaheer Abbas Advises PCB To Assign Coaching Slots To Patriotic Ex-cricketers

ISLAMABAD, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 27th Aug, 2019 )bserving that former national cricketers are truly patriotic and can deliver their best to the players, Asian Bradman Zaheer Abbas on Tuesday proposed the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to go for all local coaching staff for the national team.

Despite, Misbahul Haq there has been two foreigners Dean Jones and Courtney Walsh who have applied for the position of head coach while bowling coach candidates include Waqar Younis, Mohammad Akram and Jalaluddin. Batting coach contenders comprising of Faisal Iqbal, Mohammad and Muhammad Wasim.

Zaheer Abbas said the PCB had hired many foreign coaches in the past and have seen the outcomes, therefore it is better to hire local like minded coaching staff who can together benefit the team and players.

"Local Pakistani cricketers are highly patriotic people, who can pass their skills to the current players with utmost dedication. I think local coaches must be given the chance to serve for the country," he said.

Zaheer Abbas further said Misbahul Haq was the best choice for the head coach as he had played with most of the current national team players and also in Pakistan Super League (PSL) therefore he knows the strengths and weaknesses of the players," he told APP.

While advising PCB to appoint another captain for Tests, Zaheer Abbas said PCB must take back the Test captaincy from Sarfraz Ahmed as leading in all three formats was burdening him.

"The captaincy of all three formats had resulted in the downfall of Sarfraz's performance therefore he must be relaxed from Test skipper," he said.

Speaking about former wicket-keeper and skipper Rashid Latif being the top contender for the chief selector, Zaheer Abbas said if the board was considering appointing Rashid for the job, than he must be made independent to take decisions as he hates interference in his work.

Rashid was also offered the role of chief selector in former chairman Najam Sehti's tenure but he declined as he wanted to head the anti-corruption unit as well.

Zaheer Abbas also lauded the Sri Lanka team who would be touring Pakistan for three ODIs and as many Twenty20s in September and October.

Karachi's National Stadium would host the ODI series beginning September 27, while the three T20s would be played at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore, the first of which will be played on October 5.

"PCB must focus on bringing the world's top teams like Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and England to Pakistan as their one visit here can help revive international cricket in the country once and for all," he said.

https://www.urdupoint.com/en/sports/zaheer-abbas-advises-pcb-to-assign-coaching-s-698596.html

 

[MenInG]

The man who taught arguably Pakistan’s greatest fast bowler and now Prime Minister Imran Khan the art of reverse swing, Sarfaraz Nawaz, is now in dire need of his former teammate to help get his cricket academy back in Islamabad, which has been forcibly taken over by a government agency in his absence.

The man who rattled world’s leading batsmen of his times by his lethal bouncers got a shocker from Metropolitan Corporation Islamabad (MCI) at a time when he is nursing his cardiac ailment at a hospital in London.

“I have been running this cricket academy for last one decade without charging any fee from the budding fast bowlers. I have been spending almost Rs 50,000 every month from my pocket, apart from spending over Rs 40 lakh for buying equipment for academy. Neither me nor my academy back in Islamabad was served any notice by MCI before this sudden takeover,” Nawaz told DNA over phone from London on Thursday.

A heavy contingent of MCI raided the academy situated at the heart of Islamabad on Monday to take control of the venue without any prior notice.

Nawaz was part of the Pakistan team for the 1974 tour of England, which didn’t lose a single match on the tour and thus became only the second side to do so after Sir Don Bradman’s invincible Australians in 1948. The 70-year-old has now sought the help from the Pakistan PM.

“If Imran has any love for cricket left in him, he should help me getting my academy back. I understand he is busy with politics and other issues, but he cannot ignore the fact that cricket is being robbed under his nose,” said Nawaz.

“Despite MCI sealing my academy, there are instances that unknown people were allowed to go inside to steal the costly cricket equipment. I would appeal our cricketer PM to take note of this and step in immediately,” he added.

Being called ‘The Melbourne hero’ following his nine-wicket haul against Australia in 1978-79 series, Nawaz is furious that despite Pakistan desperately needing pace bowlers to revive its cricketing fortunes at the international level, the yesteryears heroes’ are being treated like this.

“This is how our administrators treat their heroes. Cricketers, administrators and sports scribes can vouch for me that the academy was meant to offer free services to those who wanted to take cricket as a profession,” said the former pacer who worked as a fast-bowling consultant at the National Cricket Academy in Lahore post his retirement in 1984 and helped unearth talent like Shoaib Akhtar, Azhar Mahmood, Shabbir Ahmed and Abdul Razzaq.

Nawaz has now called upon all the former players and cricket lovers to raise their voice against those ‘political elements’ who are hell bent to destroy the cricket culture in Pakistan.

“Don’t mix politics with cricket. We have given so many great pace bowlers to the world and we need academies which are there to impart the free training to those who probably don’t have money but have that God-given talent to shine at the world level. I’m already past 70 but still have a lot of passion to contribute to help the next generation of cricketers,” said Nawaz.

In his illustrious career, Sarfaraz took 177 wickets from 55 Tests and 63 from 45 ODIs. His international career spanned 15 years from March 1969 to November 1984.

https://www.dnaindia.com/cricket/re...araz-nawaz-takes-on-pak-pm-imran-khan-2786025

 

[Savak]

Sarfaraz has talked a lot of smack against IK in the last 3 decades especially at the behest of his political adversaries. Why should IK do him any favors now?

 

[Shafi]

I wish I could put these vengeful formers into the zoo with the beasts.

 

[MenInG]

During games of cricket at his father’s construction sites in Karachi in the 1960s, Sarfraz Nawaz is said to have discovered that if one side of the ball was roughed up and the other side was kept shiny, the deliveries were near unplayable. The lanky pacer went on to play 55 Tests and 45 ODIs for Pakistan in a 15-year long international career between 1969 and 1984, and is said to have been the first proponent of reverse swing.

Now retired and residing in London, the 71-year-old Nawaz didn’t mince his words in an interview to The Indian Express in which he spoke about Pakistan cricket, Virat Kohli, the art of reverse swing, Jasprit Bumrah and a huge controversy involving India.

Bowlers will suffer in the post-Covid era
The International Cricket Council (ICC) has fresh guidelines on shining the ball and Australian ball manufacturer Kookaburra is said to have planned a wax application to keep the ball’s shine intact. Nawaz said this will make contests even more uneven and the ball “will lose its magic” if players can’t rough up one side.

“When players won’t be able to apply sweat or saliva to shine it, it will not behave like a conventional ball. When a conventional ball gets older, it starts producing reverse swing and poses a great threat to the batsmen,” Nawaz said.

“But I can predict the bowlers will be at great loss,” said Nawaz.

Nawaz admitted he was impressed by Indian fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah.

“Bumrah has a deceptive bowling action and bowls great yorkers. Despite the fact that batsmen across the world have learnt to deal with him, he still sticks to his line and length. His ball comes quicker to off stump. He will play long for India,” he said.

He said Mohammed Shami has the ability to get reverse swing and is “lethal with an older ball”, and said Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s effectiveness with the new ball is unparalleled.

“Being a conventional swing bowler, Bhuvneshwar will prove to be effective with the new system post lockdown,” he said.

Nawaz retired from international cricket in 1984 and after a year-long stint as a commentator, became parliamentarian in 1985. He still keeps an eye on cricket in his home nation and thinks it’s too early for newly-appointed ODI skipper Babar Azam to take the reins.

“I think it’s too early for him to be a captain. He should have been given more exposure as a batsman and a vice-captain before giving the reins of the team. Team members respect the skipper only when he is experienced and matured. Babar Azam is lacking on this front,” he said.

Nawaz said he admired West Indies’ Gordon Greenidge for his intelligence as a player and technically sound batting. But he’s very clear that Indian captain Virat Kohli is the greatest of all time.

“Virat Kohli is undoubtedly beyond comparison. He will certainly surpass Tendulkar on all fronts. Tendulkar was weak against inswing while Kohli hardly has any flaw in his batting. Initially in his career, he would fumble against the outswingers but now he has reached the pinnacle of his batting,” he said.

Reminiscing about his bowling partnership and stint under skipper Imran Khan, Nawaz spoke of how he made an exception and taught the younger Pakistani the art of reverse swing.

“During the 1974 Pakistan tour of England, I realised Imran would be my regular partner in the Pakistan team. After the tour we had a few unofficial friendly matches in the West Indies, and there I shared my knowledge of swing bowling with Imran, who turned out to be a very good learner,” he said.

While Khan, who is now Pakistan’s Prime Minister often meets former international players, Nawaz knows he’s unlikely to be invited given they’ve not been on talking terms for the last 30 years.

“Differences arose over the selection of the Pakistan team after the 1992 World Cup win. Imran was picking his own team and PCB had no say in the selection.

“I was a sports advisor to the government and asked the board if it’s the Pakistan cricket team or the Imran XI. It irked Imran and things got personal between us,” said Nawaz.

While Nawaz is full of praise for Kapil Dev and Malcolm Marshall for their effectiveness, he acknowledges the talent of two of his countrymen.

“Wasim (Akram) was brilliant with the new ball and Waqar (Younis) was lethal with the old ball. His (Younis) in-swinging yorkers with the old ball were a treat for the eyes,” he said of the two Pakistani bowlers who are arguably the greatest exponents of reverse swing.

Nawaz said that the current Pakistani bowling lineup doesn’t have a single player who gets to play all matches.

“Naseem Shah and Mohammed Hasnain are quite effective but they are too young. Taking a look at their frail physiques and considerable heights, I don’t think they would be able to play longer for Pakistan. One has to be well-built for a longer career as a fast bowler. Shaheen Shah Afridi is a medium pacer and lacks sharpness,” he said.

A most controversial dismissal
Nawaz’s best bowling figures were 9 for 86 against mighty Australians in 1979 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground when he took just 33 deliveries to take Pakistan to an unlikely victory. Nawaz claimed seven Australian wickets while conceding just the 1 run. After that Pakistan went to WACA in Perth and Nawaz was involved in a controversy that came to be called the Hilditch affair.

It was the fifth day and Australia’s Andrew Hilditch was unbeaten at 29. The ball was returned in the Australian’s direction after a wayward throw by a Pakistan fielder. Hilditch picked up the ball and handed it to Nawaz, who appealed for Hilditch’s dismissal for ‘handling the ball’. The Australian was adjudged out and there was a lot of debate over Nawaz’s poor sportsmanship.

But the former Pakistani bowler said it was purely a retaliatory gesture.

“The Aussies had Mankaded Sikander Bakht just a few hours ago on the same day. We were 196 runs ahead and Alan Hurst found Sikander outside the crease while running to bowl. To everyone’s surprise, he Mankaded him.

“So on the same day when I got a chance to get their batsman out under the rule of the game, I simply did that,” he said.

The four controversial bouncers against India
India were touring Pakistan in 1978-79. This was the first tour to Pakistan in 17 years. It was seen as a diplomatic coup for the then Morarji Desai- led Janata Party government.

The ODI series was tied 1-1. In the third ODI in Sahiwal, Pakistan scored 205/7 in the first 40-over inning. India, in reply, were at 180/2 in 35 overs. A series win was in sight for India.

Nawaz was brought into the attack and he bowled four consecutive short balls, all of which were out of the batsman’s reach. The umpire did not call them wides. A fuming Indian skipper Bishan Singh Bedi conceded the match to protest against this and effectively lost the series 2-1. Bedi was removed as captain and Sunil Gavaskar took charge. Nawaz maintained he did nothing wrong.

“It was within the rules of the game as there was no restriction on the number of bouncers in an over. Why would umpires give those short-pitched balls wides?” he said.

He said Bedi was a victim of a “bigger conspiracy.”

“Gavaskar wanted to be the captain and his group in the team pushed Bedi to concede the match over bouncers so that the board could remove him. That’s what happened to him on the team’s return to India,” he said.


Media from both the countries had criticised Bedi for his ‘overreaction’. As per sports journalist Suresh Menon’s book ‘Bishan- Portrait of a cricketer’, an enraged Bedi had told his team manager Fatehsinghrao Gaekwad, “If you want us to be diplomats and lose matches unfairly, ask Morarji Desai to captain the team. I am going home.”

https://indianexpress.com/article/s...an-cricket-controversies-coronavirus-6419838/

 

[chazam]

During games of cricket at his father’s construction sites in Karachi in the 1960s, Sarfraz Nawaz is said to have discovered that if one side of the ball was roughed up and the other side was kept shiny, the deliveries were near unplayable. The lanky pacer went on to play 55 Tests and 45 ODIs for Pakistan in a 15-year long international career between 1969 and 1984, and is said to have been the first proponent of reverse swing.

Now retired and residing in London, the 71-year-old Nawaz didn’t mince his words in an interview to The Indian Express in which he spoke about Pakistan cricket, Virat Kohli, the art of reverse swing, Jasprit Bumrah and a huge controversy involving India.

Bowlers will suffer in the post-Covid era
The International Cricket Council (ICC) has fresh guidelines on shining the ball and Australian ball manufacturer Kookaburra is said to have planned a wax application to keep the ball’s shine intact. Nawaz said this will make contests even more uneven and the ball “will lose its magic” if players can’t rough up one side.

“When players won’t be able to apply sweat or saliva to shine it, it will not behave like a conventional ball. When a conventional ball gets older, it starts producing reverse swing and poses a great threat to the batsmen,” Nawaz said.

“But I can predict the bowlers will be at great loss,” said Nawaz.

Nawaz admitted he was impressed by Indian fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah.

“Bumrah has a deceptive bowling action and bowls great yorkers. Despite the fact that batsmen across the world have learnt to deal with him, he still sticks to his line and length. His ball comes quicker to off stump. He will play long for India,” he said.

He said Mohammed Shami has the ability to get reverse swing and is “lethal with an older ball”, and said Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s effectiveness with the new ball is unparalleled.

“Being a conventional swing bowler, Bhuvneshwar will prove to be effective with the new system post lockdown,” he said.

Nawaz retired from international cricket in 1984 and after a year-long stint as a commentator, became parliamentarian in 1985. He still keeps an eye on cricket in his home nation and thinks it’s too early for newly-appointed ODI skipper Babar Azam to take the reins.

“I think it’s too early for him to be a captain. He should have been given more exposure as a batsman and a vice-captain before giving the reins of the team. Team members respect the skipper only when he is experienced and matured. Babar Azam is lacking on this front,” he said.

Nawaz said he admired West Indies’ Gordon Greenidge for his intelligence as a player and technically sound batting. But he’s very clear that Indian captain Virat Kohli is the greatest of all time.

“Virat Kohli is undoubtedly beyond comparison. He will certainly surpass Tendulkar on all fronts. Tendulkar was weak against inswing while Kohli hardly has any flaw in his batting. Initially in his career, he would fumble against the outswingers but now he has reached the pinnacle of his batting,” he said.

Reminiscing about his bowling partnership and stint under skipper Imran Khan, Nawaz spoke of how he made an exception and taught the younger Pakistani the art of reverse swing.

“During the 1974 Pakistan tour of England, I realised Imran would be my regular partner in the Pakistan team. After the tour we had a few unofficial friendly matches in the West Indies, and there I shared my knowledge of swing bowling with Imran, who turned out to be a very good learner,” he said.

While Khan, who is now Pakistan’s Prime Minister often meets former international players, Nawaz knows he’s unlikely to be invited given they’ve not been on talking terms for the last 30 years.

“Differences arose over the selection of the Pakistan team after the 1992 World Cup win. Imran was picking his own team and PCB had no say in the selection.

“I was a sports advisor to the government and asked the board if it’s the Pakistan cricket team or the Imran XI. It irked Imran and things got personal between us,” said Nawaz.

While Nawaz is full of praise for Kapil Dev and Malcolm Marshall for their effectiveness, he acknowledges the talent of two of his countrymen.

“Wasim (Akram) was brilliant with the new ball and Waqar (Younis) was lethal with the old ball. His (Younis) in-swinging yorkers with the old ball were a treat for the eyes,” he said of the two Pakistani bowlers who are arguably the greatest exponents of reverse swing.

Nawaz said that the current Pakistani bowling lineup doesn’t have a single player who gets to play all matches.

“Naseem Shah and Mohammed Hasnain are quite effective but they are too young. Taking a look at their frail physiques and considerable heights, I don’t think they would be able to play longer for Pakistan. One has to be well-built for a longer career as a fast bowler. Shaheen Shah Afridi is a medium pacer and lacks sharpness,” he said.

A most controversial dismissal
Nawaz’s best bowling figures were 9 for 86 against mighty Australians in 1979 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground when he took just 33 deliveries to take Pakistan to an unlikely victory. Nawaz claimed seven Australian wickets while conceding just the 1 run. After that Pakistan went to WACA in Perth and Nawaz was involved in a controversy that came to be called the Hilditch affair.

It was the fifth day and Australia’s Andrew Hilditch was unbeaten at 29. The ball was returned in the Australian’s direction after a wayward throw by a Pakistan fielder. Hilditch picked up the ball and handed it to Nawaz, who appealed for Hilditch’s dismissal for ‘handling the ball’. The Australian was adjudged out and there was a lot of debate over Nawaz’s poor sportsmanship.

But the former Pakistani bowler said it was purely a retaliatory gesture.

“The Aussies had Mankaded Sikander Bakht just a few hours ago on the same day. We were 196 runs ahead and Alan Hurst found Sikander outside the crease while running to bowl. To everyone’s surprise, he Mankaded him.

“So on the same day when I got a chance to get their batsman out under the rule of the game, I simply did that,” he said.

The four controversial bouncers against India
India were touring Pakistan in 1978-79. This was the first tour to Pakistan in 17 years. It was seen as a diplomatic coup for the then Morarji Desai- led Janata Party government.

The ODI series was tied 1-1. In the third ODI in Sahiwal, Pakistan scored 205/7 in the first 40-over inning. India, in reply, were at 180/2 in 35 overs. A series win was in sight for India.

Nawaz was brought into the attack and he bowled four consecutive short balls, all of which were out of the batsman’s reach. The umpire did not call them wides. A fuming Indian skipper Bishan Singh Bedi conceded the match to protest against this and effectively lost the series 2-1. Bedi was removed as captain and Sunil Gavaskar took charge. Nawaz maintained he did nothing wrong.

“It was within the rules of the game as there was no restriction on the number of bouncers in an over. Why would umpires give those short-pitched balls wides?” he said.

He said Bedi was a victim of a “bigger conspiracy.”

“Gavaskar wanted to be the captain and his group in the team pushed Bedi to concede the match over bouncers so that the board could remove him. That’s what happened to him on the team’s return to India,” he said.


Media from both the countries had criticised Bedi for his ‘overreaction’. As per sports journalist Suresh Menon’s book ‘Bishan- Portrait of a cricketer’, an enraged Bedi had told his team manager Fatehsinghrao Gaekwad, “If you want us to be diplomats and lose matches unfairly, ask Morarji Desai to captain the team. I am going home.”

https://indianexpress.com/article/s...an-cricket-controversies-coronavirus-6419838/

I have never heard Sarfaraz Nawaz say any good things about any one ever. What did Indian express pay him ??
He did not peddle too many controversy theoris. Wonder what changed.

 

[sweep_shot]

It is about who is qualified. It doesn't matter where the coach is from.