‘They Want To Get Rid Of Me’: PCB Chief Mohsin Naqvi Blasts At Critics Over England Tour Scrutiny

Pakistan Cricket Board chair Mohsin Naqvi has defended the sweeping changes made after the team's 194-run defeat at Lord's. He said there was no choice but to replace out-of-form players after the loss gave England an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-Test series.

The PCB has replaced seven players and removed head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed and bowling coach Umar Gul ahead of the third Test at Edgbaston. The match now has no bearing on the series result. The move has drawn widespread criticism, with experts around the world expressing shock and dismay. Shahid Afridi and Shoaib Malik also voiced disapproval on X.

Naqvi's first comments since the shake-up also carried a political edge. He argued that much of the backlash was aimed at him because he now leads the board. He rejected suggestions that Pakistan cricket was in terminal decline, even as the team sits at the bottom of the World Test Championship table and is enduring a poor run across formats.

Naqvi Defends Changes

Naqvi said the board acted because the team's results left it with no room to wait.

"There is always criticism when it comes to team selection and I am not bothered by it," Naqvi told Geo Network, speaking for the first time after the development. "We are answerable for results and what happened in the last two matches is wrong. But we are looking for improvement in the Test format as we have had in the ODIs and T20Is."

He framed the seven changes as replacements rather than permanent exclusions. "Every match of a series is important for us and we are not left with any option if a player is not performing but to look for his replacement. The purpose behind these changes is not to axe players from contention, but just to replace them. Consider [Salman] Agha who is a very good player, but he could not click because of some reasons. He was spoken to about it," Naqvi said.

That explanation came after a drastic response to the Lord's defeat. Pakistan had already lost the series by the second Test. The September 9 match at Edgbaston is now a dead rubber, and the board wants to reset the side before the final game.

Also Read: Mohsin Naqvi’s PCB Hit Panic Button: Pakistan Head Coach & 7 Players Dropped Ahead Of 3rd England Test

Criticism And Response

Naqvi suggested the criticism had as much to do with his position as with the team's form.

"They want to get rid of me [with this criticism], but let me share some facts," he said. "We have jumped to number five from eight in ODIs and won four of the six series since we have appointed the new coaching set-up [under Mike Hesson]. We were ninth in T20Is and now sit at sixth and our success rate has climbed to 73% from 24. Yet, there is criticism that cricket is finished in the country."

He also challenged the idea that a bad defeat or a shock loss means a major cricket nation has collapsed. "Did cricket come to an end in South Africa and India after they lost to Namibia and Ireland?" Naqvi questioned. South Africa are the current World Test Championship champions and India hold the men's T20 World Cup title.

Naqvi then turned on former players who, he argued, were feeding a harmful narrative around the team. "Everyone has a right to criticise performances, but they portray these losses as terminal. It is not acceptable for those [former] players who have not achieved anything in life to push this narrative. I seek advice from former cricketers time to time and I feel that we are doing poor in Test cricket."

"We have had a discussion to ascertain the reasons behind it. They include factors beyond performance and we will get to the bottom of it … I would not allow anyone to blame the players for the sake of it and ask everyone to stop demotivating the players. It is unfair," Naqvi said.

Pakistan's Wider Slide

The results give weight to the anger around the team. Pakistan's defeat at Lord's was their 15th in the last 20 Tests and left them at the bottom of the World Test Championship standings. They also finished there in the previous cycle.

The decline is no longer limited to red-ball cricket. Pakistan have failed to reach the semi-finals of the last three ICC tournaments. They were winless in the home Champions Trophy last year and exited in the group stage. In the T20 World Cup this year, they went out in the Super Eight. Their 2024 T20 World Cup campaign ended even earlier after a group-stage loss to USA in Dallas.

That broader slide has drawn comparisons with Pakistan hockey. Pakistan once dominated that sport, winning four World Cups and three Olympic gold medals. But they have fallen sharply since the turn of the century and recently finished 11th in a 16-team World Cup in their first appearance at that event after eight years away.

Rankings And Replacements

The official rankings tell that story. When the PCB appointed Hesson to lead the white-ball squads on May 13, 2025, Pakistan occupied fifth spot in ODIs and eighth in T20Is. A month before Naqvi became PCB chair in early 2024, the side stood fourth across both formats. They now sit fifth in ODIs and sixth on the T20I table.

The fuller picture is more mixed. At the start of 2024, a month before Naqvi was elected PCB chair, Pakistan were fourth in both white-ball formats. In Tests, they were sixth then and have now slipped to eighth.

The board will now hope the seven reinforcements can give it something to build on. The new group includes five uncapped players and will be watched closely not just at Edgbaston but also in the last two assignments of the current cycle: home series against Sri Lanka and New Zealand.