Pakistan succumbed to a heartbreaking five-wicket defeat at the hands of India in the Asia Cup 2025 final on Sunday (September 28) at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. It was their third loss to the arch-rivals in the continental showpiece.
Asked to bat first, the Men in Green suffered a miserable collapse from 113/1 to 146 all out in 19.1 overs. Kuldeep Yadav starred with the ball for India, returning with the figures of 4/30 in four overs while Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy and Axar Patel picked up two wickets each.
In reply, the Suryakumar Yadav-led side was reduced to 20/3 inside the powerplay. However, Tilak Varma and Sanju Samson bailed the team out of trouble by adding 57 runs for the fourth wicket.
While Samson was dismissed for 24, Tilak (69* off 53) stayed till the end to take his side home with two deliveries to spare. Shivam Dube (33 off 22) also returned with a stunning cameo to put India on the brink of victory, and Rinku Singh (4*) hit the winning boundary.
The outcome left former Pakistan speedster Shoaib Akhtar fuming. He delivered a blunt post-mortem of Pakistan’s Asia Cup final loss to India, criticising the PCB, captain Salman Agha, and coach Mike Hesson.
According to Akhtar, the defeat was a reflection of systemic flaws in Pakistan cricket, including a lack of aggression, poor strategic choices, and PCB’s preference for "obedient kids" over strong personalities.
“Humey ab shareef bacche chahiyen, jo aaath baje curfew legake ghar pey bait jaayen. Cricket board ko in jaisey bechare, lallu-kattu chahiye. They don’t want strong personalities. This is the reflection of the PCB policies,” Akhtar said on ARY News.
He lambasted Agha for failing to inspire as a leader, saying, “Where will the attitude come when the captain is not inspiring? The captain is a reflection of the board’s choices.”
Not the one to mince his words, Akhtar slammed coach Hesson for sticking to “half-baked allrounders” instead of backing match-winners like Hasan Nawaz.
“Senseless and headless-chicken management. The team combinations weren’t right, the captaincy wasn’t spot-on, and they weren’t willing to listen to us,” he added.
The Rawalpindi Express didn’t hold back as he humorously highlighted Pakistan’s vanishing fast-bowling heritage, lamenting the shift from aggressive talent to “obedient kids” who are easier to manage. He blamed the PCB for discouraging strong personalities.
Akhtar also explained why he has avoided cricket administration after retirement. “From the first day after my retirement, I had decided I will never join PCB as whoever has gone there has never come out with respect. I work in TV, take money, and sit. These guys don’t want strong personalities,” he said.
Shoaib Akhtar proposed reforms to the PCB, calling for grassroots development, regional teams, and a PSL 2.0 to nurture young talent.
“Now there is Mohsin Naqvi, next time koi aur saab aa jayenge. Unless you bring in a visionary educated man… history will remember if you start this,” Akhtar remarked.
