'Pakistan Cricket Board is a circus': Ex-Pakistan pacer slams PCB ahead of England Test series

Shan Masood, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Babar Azam (getty)
Shan Masood, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Babar Azam (getty)

Highlights:

Pakistan recently lost the Test series against Bangladesh.

The Pakistan vs Bangladesh Test series is scheduled to start from October 7.

Pakistan Test team led by Shan Masood lost badly in both matches of the two-match Test series at home against Bangladesh. Bangladesh registered the first series win in Test cricket history against Pakistan. Now, the Pakistan team will play a three-match Test series against England at home. But before the Test series against England, the Pakistan Cricket Board is going to organize the ODI Champions Cup with the white ball. Aiming for this tournament, former Pakistan fast bowler Yasir Arafat lashed out at the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
 

The ODI Champions Cup is going to be organized in Pakistan from 12 to 29 September and five teams have been formed for it. But Yasir Arafat raised questions on its timing. 

 

"Your grey areas have been highlighted. Fitness issues, technique issues, and pitches. Today I heard Jason Gillespie and the high-performance coach are going back to Australia. You are conducting an ODI tournament. These decisions I don't understand. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is a circus," Arafat said on YouTube.

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"There are jokers in that, and this is a joke. You have a Test series against England coming up, and you are bringing players for ODIs. Shan Masood is saying in a press conference that our players have not played first-class cricket for 1.5 years. You have a big series against England coming up, and you are playing ODIs. This looks like a circus to me. The people who are working are jokers, and their decisions are jokes," he added.
 

 

When will Pakistan vs England Test series start

 

Pakistan who lost the Test series against Bangladesh will now host England for the three Test match series scheduled to take place in October. The first match will be played in Multan on 7 October. The second Test match will be played in Karachi from 15 to 19 October and the third and final Test will be played in Rawalpindi from 24 October. However, there are chances that the venue for these Test matches will be shifted because the venues are currently under maintenance because of the upcoming Champions Trophy 2025. 

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