Hafeez blames players for Australia and New Zealand losses

Pakistan team Director and Head Coach Mohammad Hafeez shifted the blame for defeats against Australia and New Zealand in the Test and T20I series respectively, local media reported Thursday.

Hafeez met with Acting PCB Chairman Shah Khawar while PCB's COO Salman Naseem was also present.

The 43-year-old expressed that the players lacked focus on the game, as their primary attention was on participating in the ongoing franchise T20 leagues.

Earlier, it was reported that Hafeez's role as director will conclude after disappointing performances in Australia and New Zealand. Pakistan lost 3-0 Down Under while the Blackcaps thumped the Men in Green 4-1.

Hafeez, nicknamed "Professor", had a contract with the side till December 15. PCB is likely to ask him not to continue any further.

Remember, Shah Khawar, Advocate of the Supreme Court of Pakistan and the Election Commissioner of PCB, assumed the powers of Chairman PCB on January 23.

According to the notification from the Inter-Provincial Coordination (IPC) Ministry and by virtue of Article 7(2) of the PCB Constitution, the Election Commissioner is vested with the powers of Chairman PCB.

Shah Khawar is the fifth person to lead PCB in the last 14 months. Before him, Ramiz Raja, Najam Sethi, Ahmed Shehzad Farooq Rana and Zaka Ashraf have also been in charge of the board's affairs.

“I would like to thank the Patron of the PCB, Mr Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar, for reposing trust in me. My primary responsibility will be to hold the election of Chairman PCB in a free and transparent manner at the earliest," Khawar said.

Earlier, caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar, the patron of the PCB, had officially nominated Mohsin Naqvi as the new representative of the Board of Governors (BoG).

The nomination comes as a replacement for Zaka Ashraf, who recently resigned from the position of Management Committee Chairman.

Federal Minister for Inter-Provincial Coordination (IPC) Fawad Hasan Fawad confirmed the news in a conversation with Geo News, stating that the notification of Mohsin Naqvi's nomination as the patron's representative in the BOG has been issued.