Being a Pakistan cricket supporter has become a painful experience lately. The national side has stumbled through 14 losses in its last 19 Test matches, a slump that was starkly highlighted by the recent three‑day demolition at Headingley, where England crushed Pakistan by an innings and 103 runs in the opening Test of the series. That defeat was not just a statistical low point; it exposed deeper problems that have been simmering within Pakistan cricket for years. The English visitors were, by any measure, a sub‑par side on the day – their bowlers lacked bite, their batsmen were indifferent, and their fielding was sloppy.
Yet even a mediocre opponent managed to expose the fragilities in Pakistan’s game. The next Test, set for Lord’s on Thursday, will be broadcast live on Sky Sports Cricket, and the anticipation is tinged with anxiety rather than optimism. On the Sky Sports Cricket Podcast, senior Cricinfo editor and Pakistan specialist Osman Samiuddin joined former England captains Michael Atherton and Nasser Hussain to dissect the situation.
Samiuddin warned that Pakistani cricket has entered an "alarm‑bells" phase, with supporters increasingly frustrated by the way the sport is administered and by the on‑field results. He began by addressing the chaotic domestic structure that has plagued the country for half a century. "There has been a constant battle over whether the domestic game should be organized around departmental teams or regional sides," Samiuddin explained. "Whatever model you finally adopt, you need to stick with it for a decade or more.
Instead, the PCB has been changing the format almost every season since the first first‑class competition in 1953. That lack of stability is destroying the foundation of talent development." The most recent overhaul came in the 2019‑20 season, when the number of first‑class teams was slashed from sixteen to six, only to be expanded again a few years later to include four first‑class tournaments and three limited‑overs competitions.
The 2019 reduction, Samiuddin noted, effectively eliminated half of the country’s pool of professional cricketers. "There were reports of players suddenly having to drive taxis because they lost their contracts overnight," he said. "Such abrupt changes cripple the pipeline that feeds the national side." Another consequence of the erratic domestic schedule is the limited variety of playing conditions. Historically, Pakistan’s first‑class matches were spread across sixteen venues, giving batsmen and bowlers exposure to a range of pitches.
In recent years, however, the bulk of games has been confined to four or five grounds. "How can a young batter like Abdullah Shafique or a seasoned opener like Imam‑ul‑Haq learn to adapt when they only ever play on a handful of surfaces?" Samiuddin asked rhetorically.
Samiuddin also highlighted the scarcity of Test cricket for Pakistan. The team has not played ten or more Tests in a calendar year since 2017, a stark contrast to other nations that schedule more frequent long‑form matches. By comparison, only Sri Lanka (four), Ireland (three) and Afghanistan (two) are slated to play fewer than five Tests in 2025. Pakistan is expected to feature in nine Tests in 2026, but the gap in recent experience has left the side under‑prepared for the rigours of the format.
The governance issues extend beyond the domestic framework. Since 2021, the PCB has cycled through four chairmen – Ramiz Raja, Najam Sethi, Zaka Ashraf and the current incumbent, Mohsin Naqvi, who also serves as Pakistan’s interior minister.
"His duties as interior minister are demanding, and one has to wonder how much time he can devote to cricket," Samiuddin observed. "Frequent changes at the top create a lack of clear direction and continuity." Player development, according to Samiuddin, has suffered equally. Talents such as Shaheen Shah Afridi, Babar Azam, Abdullah Shafique and Naseem Shah burst onto the scene with great promise, yet many have struggled to fulfil that potential. "The regression is largely due to how the PCB manages careers," he asserted.
Injuries have been mishandled, rehabilitation programmes have been rushed, and coaching assignments have been in constant flux. Shaheen, for instance, returned from a knee injury in 2022 but has featured in only nine of the last 27 Tests, while Naseem has not played a Test since December 2024. Fast bowlers, in particular, need regular first‑class action to rebuild strength and refine technique. Yet Shaheen has played barely any domestic matches in the past three years, and the same is true for Naseem.
"A pace bowler cannot maintain peak performance without consistent red‑ball cricket," Samiuddin explained. "The constant coaching turnover – never knowing who the head coach or bowling coach is – only adds to the confusion." The broader picture, Samiuddin warned, is one of increasing waste of talent. While some level of attrition is inevitable in any sporting system, the rate at which Pakistan discards promising players has accelerated dramatically over the last six years. Unexplained exclusions, such as the recent omission of Shaheen and Naseem from the Test squad, send unsettling messages to younger athletes about the security of their careers.
Fan sentiment mirrors these concerns. At Leeds, the Pakistani fan base was noticeably thin, and the mood among those present was one of impatience rather than hope. "Supporters are not angry at the players; they are angry at the administration," Samiuddin said.
"They love the team, but they are fed up with the way cricket is being run in Pakistan." He warned that if the current trajectory continues, cricket in Pakistan could follow a path similar to that of hockey in the country or the West Indies cricket decline – once dominant sports now struggling for relevance and resources. "We are at an alarm‑bells‑ringing danger point," he cautioned. "If the governance does not stabilise, the sport could lose its place in the national consciousness." In summary, Pakistan’s cricket woes stem from a combination of erratic domestic restructuring, insufficient Test exposure, leadership instability, and poor player‑development practices. Addressing these issues will require a long‑term commitment to a single domestic model, consistent coaching structures, better injury management, and a governing board that can devote its full attention to the game.
Only then can the talent pool be nurtured effectively and the national side return to the competitive heights its supporters once enjoyed.