A day after Sri Lanka humiliated Pakistan with a 3-0 win in the T20 series marking the former’s return to the country ever since the 2009 bus attack, a resolution in the Punjab Assembly has sought skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed’s removal from the national cricket team.
“The team that tops the global T20 rankings, has lost from a team that sits at the eighth spot,” read the resolution submitted by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Malik Zaheer Iqbal.
Seeking Sarfaraz’s removal from the team, the resolution further demanded an investigation into Pakistan’s whitewash against a comparatively inexperienced team like Sri Lanka.
Earlier, head coach, chief selector and former national cricket team captain Misbahul Haq conceded that the defeat had been a “wake-up call for the team”.
Pakistan have been humbled thrice in Lahore, losing the first game by 64 runs, the second by 35 and the third by 13 runs, to a Sri Lankan side missing some of their top players, such as Lasith Malinga, Dimuth Karunaratne and Angelo Mathews.
“This was an eye-opener for us and you as well. The way we go after the seniors, and what we did in the World Cup. We forget their performances,” said Misbah at a presser in Lahore as he appeared to blame the team’s naivety and struggles against spin bowling the reason for the defeat.
Sarfaraz, who came in to bat at number four and scored 17 off 16 balls before throwing away his wicket, appeared to pin the responsibility of the failed run chase on his partner Haris Sohail.
He has earlier been trained guns at also for his poor performance at the 2019 World Cup, which was followed by a campaign seeking his removal as the captain.
