It must be a trying time for anyone who follows Pakistan cricket these days. The national side has endured a string of defeats, losing 14 out of the last 19 Test matches, a slump that was highlighted by the recent three‑day drubbing at Headingley where England won by an innings and 103 runs in the opening Test of the series. That loss was a stark reminder of how the team is currently struggling on multiple fronts. The English visitors were, in many respects, a perfect storm of inefficiency: their bowlers lacked bite, their batsmen failed to build innings, and their fielding was below par.
The combination of these shortcomings produced a crushing defeat that has left Pakistani supporters questioning the direction of their cricketing establishment. Ahead of the second Test at Lord's, scheduled to begin on Thursday with live coverage on Sky Sports Cricket (10 am broadcast, 11 am first ball), senior Cricinfo editor and Pakistan cricket analyst Osman Samiuddin joined former England captains Michael Atherton and Nasser Hussain on the Sky Sports Cricket Podcast. During the discussion, Samiuddin laid out a series of structural and managerial problems that he believes have pushed Pakistan cricket into an "alarm‑bells" stage, with fans increasingly frustrated by the way the game is being administered. Samiuddin began by pointing out the chronic instability in the domestic framework.
"Whatever model you choose – departmental teams or regional sides – Pakistan has been waging a fifty‑year battle over the right structure. My advice would be to pick one system and stick with it for at least a decade," he said. Since the first first‑class season in 1953, the country has altered its domestic layout almost every year, creating a climate of uncertainty that hampers long‑term planning. He noted that the 2019‑20 overhaul, which slashed the number of first‑class teams from sixteen to six, effectively halved the pool of professional cricketers.
The abrupt reduction forced many players to abandon the sport overnight; some even took up taxi driving to make ends meet. "That kind of drastic, frequent change erodes the quality of domestic cricket, and domestic cricket is the breeding ground for international talent," Samiuddin argued. The contraction also meant that matches, which once took place across a wide array of sixteen venues, are now confined to four or five grounds. This limited exposure to varied conditions makes it difficult for emerging batsmen like Abdullah Shafique and Imam‑ul‑Haq to develop the adaptability required for the rigours of Test cricket.
Beyond the domestic arena, Samiuddin highlighted the scarcity of Test opportunities. Pakistan has not played a double‑digit number of Tests in any calendar year since 2017.
By contrast, only Sri Lanka (four), Ireland (three) and Afghanistan (two) have scheduled fewer than five Tests in 2025. Pakistan is slated to play nine Tests in 2026, but the lack of regular high‑level competition has stunted player growth. He also blamed the board’s leadership turnover for much of the malaise.
Since 2021, four different chairmen – Ramiz Raja, Najam Sethi, Zaka Ashraf and now Mohsin Naqvi – have taken the helm, each bringing divergent philosophies and varying degrees of involvement. Naqvi, who also serves as Pakistan's interior minister, is reportedly stretched thin by his governmental duties, raising questions about how much attention he can devote to cricket administration. Samiuddin lamented that many promising talents have either plateaued or regressed. "Shaheen Shah Afridi, Babar Azam, Abdullah Shafique, Naseem Shah – these are players who burst onto the scene, only to lose momentum.
The primary reason is mismanagement by the PCB," he asserted. He criticized the board's handling of injuries and player development, noting that both Shaheen and Naseem have been under‑utilised. Shaheen, after a knee injury sustained while fielding in Sri Lanka in 2022, returned to the side amid confusion over his rehabilitation and may have been rushed back too soon.
Moreover, he has played only nine of the last 27 Tests and has seen his first‑class appearances dwindle to virtually none over the past three years – a worrying sign for a fast bowler who needs regular match practice to maintain pace and durability. Naseem Shah, meanwhile, has not featured in a Test since December 2024, despite being one of the most exciting young pacemen in the world. Both bowlers have suffered from constant changes in coaching staff, never knowing who their head coach or bowling coach is at any given time.
This lack of continuity undermines confidence and hampers skill development. The analyst warned that Pakistan's waste of talent has accelerated in recent years.
While some degree of attrition is inevitable, the rate at which promising players are lost to poor planning, inadequate support structures, and erratic selection policies is alarming. He cited instances where Shaheen and Naseem were omitted from the Test squad without clear justification, a move that "messes with a player's career" and erodes morale. Observations from the first Test in Leeds reinforced these concerns.
The Pakistani fan base was noticeably thin, and Samiuddin sensed that patience with the board’s governance is wearing thin. "Fans are not angry at the players; they are angry at the way cricket is run in Pakistan.
They may still turn up at Lord's, but attendance is dwindling," he said. He warned that if the current trajectory continues, cricket in Pakistan could follow the same decline seen in its domestic hockey scene or the West Indies, where administrative failures have led to a steep drop in performance and popularity. In summary, Samiuddin identified several interlinked problems: an ever‑shifting domestic structure that destabilises talent pipelines, insufficient Test exposure that limits player development, frequent leadership changes that prevent coherent long‑term strategy, and a board that fails to protect and nurture its star performers. Until these issues are addressed with decisive, sustained reforms, Pakistan cricket is likely to remain trapped in a cycle of under‑achievement, leaving its passionate supporters to wonder when, or if, the alarm bells will finally be silenced.