Waqar Younis apologizes for horrific World T20 debacle

Pakistan coach Waqar Yonis landed in Lahore on Tuesday after being summoned by his employers to explain their horrific World T20 campaign. Their campaign got off to a decent start when they crushed their subcontinent rival Bangladesh in their opening game at the Eden Gardens. Following that, it has been defeat after defeat that has pegged them back. A disappointed Shahid Afridi, at the end of the tournament, said that he would take a call on his retirement soon.

Having arrived to meet the PCB much earlier than the skipper, a disappointed Waqar Younis addressed the Pakistani reporters gathered to greet him at the airport. After a heartfelt apology to the Pakistani faithful, Waqar got down to business by trying to explain what happened.

“I apologise to the whole nation, to all of you and to all the people who were at the airport chanting against us, all the people at the NCA [National Cricket Academy] who look after us,” Waqar said. “I apologise to everyone. Literally, I fold my hands and request all of you to forgive us for the way we performed, it should not have been this way. Our performance should have been better, but unfortunately, that didn’t happen.”

“These days there is a notion being discussed to dismiss the chairman, selectors or the coaches, but the point is whether the problems are really being understood. Are we really getting down to the problem in our country and mending it? Are we really correcting the system which needs to be rectified?

The beleaguered Waqar Younis also underlined that cosmetic changes and temporary replacements will do nothing to serve the cause of Pakistan cricket. He also added that it is important that the PCB open their eyes and try to solve the apparent issues rather than other issues at hand.

“So cosmetic changes will not help. This might bring temporary relief, might make you feel that things have changed and everything is fine but I think we should think about this deeply and mark the problems,” he said. “We know where the problems are and we have to open our eyes, eradicate the politics from cricket and get things right. I had mentioned these problems in 2015 and have put them up again. I can hope the PCB can deal with them,” Waqar Younis added.

Waqar Younis also offered to step down from his position as head coach should the PCB be looking to axe someone. He also blamed the lack of international cricket as well as the bad domestic cricket structure in place.

“We don’t need to hide anything, everything is in front of us, they way we played. It’s not like I am hiding anything. In fact, the time to sweep things under the rug is over. It is time to step up and solve problems. People have blamed me. That’s not an issue. I will go home but the problem remains. If the problem is solved by sacking me, then sack me. Not tomorrow, but today. But the problem is deeper than that.”

“It’s not that roots have always been weak in the country … cricket not being played here in Pakistan is one of the many problems but we have to take care of our stadiums and domestic cricket to get it going.

“Yes not having international cricket in Pakistan did make an impact and disturbed the roots of cricket. Whatever you have made in Dubai or Abu Dhabi, a home away from home, isn’t really a solution. India and other countries are producing cricketers by playing at home grounds. Cricket the game isn’t for stars, it’s a game for heroes. We often mix it as you may see a star doing TV ads but cricket is played by heroes and those who play the game don’t see other things around. So we want heroes and not the stars.”