Former Pakistan wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal went on a furious rant after Pakistan suffered a 1-2 defeat in their recent ODI series against Bangladesh. The visitors lost the series when they fell behind by 11 runs in the decider in Mirpur. Akmal, frustrated with Pakistan’s poor performance, questioned how the team could hope to win the ICC trophy when they couldn’t even claim a bilateral series – could they really expect to win it by stealing it?
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Akmal’s comment about trophy thefts immediately brought PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi. In September last year, Naqvi walked away with the Asia Cup trophy in Dubai after India refused to take it from him. The trophy was never awarded on stage, which drew criticism and earning him the viral nickname “trophy chor”.
While Akmal did not directly name Naqvi, his comments were widely interpreted as a reference to the PCB chairman.
“If you don’t want to win against teams, then how are you going to succeed in an ICC event? Are you going to steal the trophy? You have to play, you have to win, you have to field a proper team. That’s the truth,” Akmal said on The Game Plan.
Kamran Akmal takes you to Mohsin Naqvi
“You don’t win, the team doesn’t win, why do you want to steal the ICC trophy?”
Indirectly calls Moshin Naqvi – Trophy Chor pic.twitter.com/TAAFhoEN70— Rohit (@Iam_Rohit_G) March 17, 2026
Pakistan Cricket: Comedy Series
Akmal criticized Pakistan’s selection policy, pointing out that several uncapped players selected for the Bangladesh ODIs, including Shamyl Hussain and Ghazi Ghori, had limited domestic experience and less than 1,000 runs in List A cricket.
He questioned the team’s approach, urged fans and analysts not to think, and described the current state of Pakistan cricket as a “comedy series”.
“If they play cricket, you will see how they perform from the ground up. You have set your own standards here, some players have not even scored a thousand runs in domestic cricket, yet they are playing against Pakistan. Some have not played two or three matches, some have not had one or two domestic seasons and yet they are playing international cricket,” Akmal said.
“What are you even talking about? What are you thinking about? Why are you thinking so much? Why are you getting so upset? You should be laughing and enjoying yourself.”
“Watch cricket like you’re watching a comedy series. That’s how I watch it – I just enjoy it because I know what it’s really about. It’s a comedy series now,” added Akmal.
Prior to the series against Bangladesh, Pakistan also struggled in the T20 World Cup, falling short of expectations and crashing out of the knockout stages. After their international commitments, the Pakistani players will take part in the Pakistan Super League (PSL), which is scheduled to begin on March 26.
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Issued by:
sabyasachi chowdhury
Published on:
17 March 2026 23:10 IST
