Pakistan had suffered 7-wicket defeat against India in Ahmedabad last week.
Pakistan cricket team director Mickey Arthur has been in the headlines for his recent controversial remark on the India versus Pakistan ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 match in Ahmedabad last week.
Arthur said that the atmosphere inside the Narendra Modi Stadium did not feel like it was 'an ICC event' after Pakistan’s seven-wicket defeat against India in the Cricket World Cup 2023.
He had stated: “Look, I'd be lying if I said it didn't. It didn't seem like an ICC event to be brutally honest. It seemed like a bilateral series; it seemed like a BCCI event. I didn't hear 'Dil Dil Pakistan' coming through the microphones too often tonight.”
Reacting to Arthur’s statement, former Pakistan captain Salman Butt said that he should avoid making such statements and focus on motivating Babar Azam and his team to bounce back in the ongoing World Cup 2023 following an embarrassing loss to India.
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Salman Butt said on his YouTube channel: “That was totally uncalled for and unprofessional. It was something that was beyond his control and something he should be the last person to be worried about. His job is to motivate players, irrespective of the circumstances. It won’t have a good effect on the team if he makes such statements.”
He also lashed out at the poor standard of umpiring at the ongoing World Cup in 2023. He questioned a number of mishaps by saying that they were unacceptable for an event of such stature.
Butt said, “The umpiring hasn't been up to the mark in the World Cup—very pathetic decision-making. The likes of David Warner and Jonny Bairstow got marginal decisions. During the India-Pakistan game, Mohammad Rizwan was given out.”
He concluded, “Luckily, he took a review, and the decision was overturned. Then, Babar Azam could have been given out in that match, but he survived. There are no world-class umpiring standards.”
(With Firstsport Inputs)