Former Pakistan batter Basit Ali has slammed Shadab Khan after the all-rounder criticised former Pakistani cricketers for questioning his place in the side following his poor performance with the ball in the T20 World Cup 2026 match against India.
The debate gathered pace after several ex-cricketers called for Shadab, Babar Azam and Shaheen Afridi to be dropped from the T20I squad following the Salman Ali Agha-led side’s humiliating loss to arch-rivals India in the T20 World Cup. The criticism did not sit well with Shadab, who pointed out that many of those “legends” had never managed to defeat India in a World Cup match during their own careers—something the current group achieved in 2021.
“Our ex-cricketers have their own opinions. They have done well for Pakistan, and at the end of the day, they have also never defeated India in the World Cup. We were the ones who defeated India in the 2021 World Cup. In World Cups, we have beaten India only once. Yes, they are legends, but they have never done anything remarkable against India in the World Cup,” Shadab told reporters after Pakistan’s win over Namibia.
The remarks drew a strong reaction from Basit Ali, who alleged that Shadab’s place in the side is influenced by his relationship with head coach Mike Hesson. Speaking on ARY News, Basit questioned Shadab’s promotion up the order against weaker opposition.
“Against weaker teams, he is promoted to bat in the top order. Why? Because he is Mike Hesson’s laadla (favourite). Had it been Inzamam, Waqar or Saqlain in charge, I would have seen where he would bat. I remember taking the A team to England. The whole time, he was busy on his mobile phone. I ended up snatching both his phones,” Basit said.
In a particularly stinging rebuttal, Basit invoked the legacy of spin maestro Saqlain Mushtaq, who also happens to be Shadab’s father-in-law, and drew a sharp comparison between eras. “Kya Saqlain match winner nahi tha? Saqlain jaisa bowler tha na, Shadab jaise das uski jeb mein rehte hain. Abhi to ek hi hai. Das rehte hain, das. Ye main aapko bata raha hoon,” Basit said on a Pakistani TV show.
Basit Ali also took a dig at the current state of the Pakistan team’s selection process, arguing that players from the 1990s and early 2000s earned their spots purely through on-field performances rather than internal recommendations.
Pakistan’s 61-run defeat to India in the ongoing T20 World Cup once again highlighted their struggles against their arch-rivals in ICC events. India now have eight wins compared to Pakistan’s lone victory in T20 World Cup history. That solitary win came in the 2021 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, when the Babar Azam-led side secured a 10-wicket triumph over India in Dubai.
‘PAK STARS NEED TO BE GROUNDED’
Former Pakistan great and batting coach Mohammad Yousuf believes that the emphatic win may have led to complacency within the dressing room. Speaking on the ‘How Does it Work’ podcast, Yousuf reflected on the aftermath of that victory:
“Fortunately, or unfortunately, the match that we won against India by 10 wickets, everyone began to think there’s no one better than us. Everyone became disrespectful. When the head coach was speaking in the dressing room, someone would either look at their phone or stare elsewhere. It all began after that match. This is never a good thing for any player. You need to be grounded, which we saw with Inzamam (ul-Haq) bhai, Saeed (Anwar) bhai they were big players. Still, they always listened to what the coaches had to say,” Yousuf said.
Pakistan, led by Salman Ali Agha, advanced to the Super 8 stage after a 102-run win over Namibia in Colombo earlier this week. However, Shadab Khan’s remarks and the subsequent backlash have once again exposed the growing divide between Pakistan’s past and present, with questions being raised not only about performances but also about accountability and standards within the national setup.
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