‘They left no legacy’: Mohammed Hafeez slams ’90s Pakan team in live TV exchange with Shoaib Akhtar | Cricket News

Hosting their first ICC tournament in over two decades, Pakan’s early group-stage exit from the Champions Trophy has triggered widespread criticism from former cricketers and experts. The Mohammad Rizwan-led side failed to notch up a win in three games, losing to New Zealand and India while their final game at home against Bangladesh was washed out.
However, former Pakan captain and head coach Mohammed Hafeez curiously targetted the yesteryear stars of the country in failing to inspire the next generations. Hafeez’s comments made for an awkward exchange during the OutSide Edge Live show, which also comprised ’90s Pakan pace sensation Shoaib Akhtar, besides Shoaib Malik and Sana Mir.
01What did Hafeez say about Pakan’s 1990s cricket superstars?“I am a huge fan of those who played in the 1990s but when it comes to legacy, they left nothing for Pakan. They didn’t win an ICC event – they lost the (World Cups of) 1996, 1999 and 2003. We reached one final (in the 1999 World Cup) and lost that badly.”
02Hafeez’s thoughts on Pakan’s lean patch and why people idolise Babar Azam”As stars, as players, they were the mega superstars. But then they couldn’t inspire us winning an ICC event. Then came a difficult period that we had to go through and then in 2007 we lost the final (of the T20 World Cup). In 2009 we won under Younis Khan’s captaincy and so there was an inspiration for the next generation. Then unfortunately a bad incident happened with Pakan cricket and we have still not been able to recover from that. Then we won the 2017 Champions Trophy, that was a huge source of inspiration. People idolise Babar Azam today and that is because even if he didn’t play a big hand in that event, he was there.”
03What was Shoaib Akhtar’s response to Hafeez?While Hafeez trashed the legacy left the Pakan mega stars, Shoaib Akhar reminded him that the country’s superior One-Day record against India was fortified during his time. “These 73 one-dayers that Pakan won against India, it is us who won it.” While Hafeez attempt to acknowledge the efforts led Imran Khan, Akhtar interrupted and said: “No you can’t cover up now, this video has been made already. You’ve already spoken about all big players.”
04What’s next for Pakan after Champions Trophy exit?Pakan will next tour New Zealand for a white-ball series, starting March 16. Helmed interim head coach Aaqib Javed, Pakan have rejigged their white-ball teams yet again with Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan dropped from the T20I set up and Salman Agha taking over as skipper. While Rizwan retained captaincy for the ODIs, left-arm seamer Shaheen Afridi was dropped from the 50-overs set-up.

WATCH VIDEO:

M Hafeez
“90s mega superstars couldn’t win a single ICC Trophy.”
Shoaib Akhtar’s reply
“Ye jo India k against 70+ ODI matches ka record agy hai wo hamny hi jeety hain.”
pic.twitter.com/rrSzYeRS0t
— Abu Bakar Tarar (@abubakartarar_) March 5, 2025
What’s next for Pakan after Champions Trophy exit?
Pakan will next tour New Zealand for a white-ball series, starting March 16. Helmed interim head coach Aaqib Javed, Pakan have rejigged their white-ball teams yet again with Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan dropped from the T20I set up and Salman Agha taking over as skipper. While Rizwan retained captaincy for the ODIs, left-arm seamer Shaheen Afridi was dropped from the 50-overs set-up.