Zaka Ashraf accuses Shahryar Khan of playing 'second fiddle' to former PCB chief Sethi

Former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Zaka Ashraf has pointed out that the current chief Shahryar Khan looked like a puppet who could only earn a bad name by adopting stratagems of ex-boss Najam Sethi.

Ashraf believes that Sethi is still working as de facto PCB chairman and Shahryar is playing second fiddle to him.

While declaring that Test and ODI captain Misbah-ul Haq is still the best choice for captaincy, Ashraf termed the treatment meted out to both the skipper and Mohammad Hafeez as disgraceful. He said that he believes both Misbah and Hafeez have been disgraced by the PCB by removing them from captaincy which has affected them negatively, The Dawn reported.

Ashraf said that if continuity is the policy of Shahryar, which he thinks is the best policy, then he should have stood by Misbah as captain since Shahid Afridi has no leadership credentials.

Ashraf said that if Misbah could not perform in the last two series, there is no need for raising hue and cry since his previous performance during the last four years speaks volume about the middle-order batsman, adding that if the skipper is out of form what Afridi has done during the last two years.

The former PCB chief said that one cannot make U-turn so frequently, while stating that it should be the priority of the PCB to support Misbah instead of considering another player for captaincy.

Ashraf further said that instead of maintaining continuity, former PCB chief Sethi removed the then T20 captain Hafeez after the last World T20 and now the same circumstances had been created for the Test and ODI captain Misbah to force him to quit his jobs.

Ashraf said that he believes both Misbah and Hafeez have been removed in an unfair manner, which is nothing but an insult to them. He added that instead of removing their flaws to keep them going, both have been removed in an insulting way.

Ashraf also said that Pakistan's series lost to Australia and Sri Lanka is actually the result of the wrong policies initiated by Sethi who still acts behind the curtain to control Shahryar. He added that the incumbent PCB chief in this old age should not play second fiddle to Sethi.