Aaqib Javed accepts responsibility for team selection, defends mid-series changes

• Aaqib hints at action against Imam amid injury controversy.
• Pakistan lost two Tests heavily, England lead series 2-0,
• Aaqib says real problem is quality of available players.

National selector Aaqib Javed said on Tuesday he was ready to take responsibility for squad selection as a member of the selection committee, while defending the mid-series release of seven players and coaching staff changes ahead of the third Test against England in Birmingham.

Speaking on Geo News' programme 'Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath', Aaqib said the selection committee bore responsibility for the squad it had chosen, but maintained that match-to-match combination decisions — including who played in the eleven — rested with the captain and head coach.

The remarks came as the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) issued a notice to selection committee members — Aaqib, Misbah-ul-Haq and Asad Shafiq — seeking written explanations within 24 hours over the basis and rationale for recommending Rizwan and Imam for the Test squad.

The notice specifically referred to a June 2 selection committee meeting whose minutes were submitted on July 1.

Separately, Misbah-ul-Haq decided to resign from the selection committee, sources close to the former Pakistan captain said, adding that he had informed the PCB and would serve a notice period before formally stepping down.

During the programme, he said he had spoken to both the captain and coach before the second Test about including fast bowler Ubaid Shah to vary the pace attack, but the suggestions were not acted upon.

"When decisions are not being made according to the plan, messages are conveyed that the playing eleven needs to be corrected," Aaqib said, adding that with the series already lost, there was nothing to lose by introducing fresh players for the third Test and showing the world Pakistan still had talent.

Aaqib also defended the decision to release seven players mid-series, saying established performers could not be immune from accountability when they failed to compete on tour.

He said the message to recalled players was clear — performance and effort were non-negotiable on important tours. He said the squad of 17 had been selected on merit and previous performances, but when players repeatedly failed to compete, action had to be taken.

Speaking on the controversy surrounding opening batter Imam-ul-Haq, Aaqib said it was a "big question mark" that a player had been unable to bat in both innings of a Test due to a muscle pull injury.

"Players have played with plasters on before. This is unfortunate, and action will be taken," he said without elaborating further.

Asked about Sarfaraz Ahmed's short tenure as head coach, Aaqib said results were not the only measure — how a coach managed their resources and led the team was equally important, regardless of whether they had been in the job five months or five years.

'Foreign coaches'

Responding to a question, Aaqib rejected allegations made by former red-ball coach Jason Gillespie that Aaqib had sought complete control and driven him out.

He said Gillespie's central complaint was that Aaqib wanted to become coach himself, which he said was untrue and that he had no interest in coaching the national team.

He said the PCB had asked him to temporarily oversee both formats while a replacement coach was being recruited through the proper advertising and interview process.

He acknowledged that foreign coaches including Gillespie and Gary Kirsten had not spent adequate time in Pakistan, saying commitment to the country was essential. 

He praised Mike Hesson for his dedication, saying the new head coach had been present and working with players through all conditions since joining.

'Player quality core problem'

Furthermore, Aaqib said the core problem facing Pakistan cricket was not selection or coaching but the quality of available players. "At the end of the day, whatever the selector or coach does, the player has to improve himself day by day," he said.

He said Pakistan's cricketing decline had been building for years and was not the result of any single chairman, coach or selector coming and going.

He also rejected the impression that he alone made all selection decisions, saying he was one of four selectors and that team selection involved the head coach and captain in a joint process.

Pakistan had suffered a humiliating innings-and-103-run defeat in the first Test, followed by a 194-run loss at Lord's in the second Test, handing England an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.

The PCB subsequently released seven players — Rizwan, Imam, Salman Ali Agha, Ali Usman, Aamir Jamal, Muhammad Awais Zafar and Khurram Shahzad — from the Test squad ahead of the Birmingham Test. Saim Ayub, Abdullah Fazal, Arafat Minhas, Mohammad Imran Jnr, Saad Baig, Mohammad Imran and Razaullah were brought in as replacements.

The board also released head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed and bowling coach Umar Gul from their positions, with the white-ball coaching panel of Mike Hesson and Ashley Noffke now overseeing the Test side.