Skipper Latif lashes Pakistan team

Pakistan drew the three-Test series against South Africa 1-1 and beat Zimbabwe 1-0 in their two-Test series. The 1992 world champions were outwitted in the three-nation, one-day international series where they lost five games out of seven, including the final.

“Whenever there was a good individual performance we either drew the game or won it. But at no stage of the tour was there a collective team effort. Matches are not won on individual performances,” Latif said.

“If you compare us with South Africa there was a world of difference.”

He said the pitches were difficult in the three-nation series but added: “The way we played out the last four games was justhorrible.”

Pakistan failed to play out their quota of 50 overs in the last two matches against South Africa, being bowled out for 145 and 114. That took South Africa’s win sequence against Pakistan to 12 games.

“If drastic measures are not taken immediately, I am afraid we might touch rock bottom very soon,” Latif said. “Teams like Zimbabwe have improved immensely but we are continuously going down.

But Pakistan coach Haroon Rashid said his team had performed well. “The pundits of the game were anticipating a 3-0 bashing. That never happened,” he said.

The former Test batsman said his team suffered heavily because of injuries. “Yes, we lacked top grade fitness but on a long tour like this one there is always injuries. It’s just bad luck that it (injuries) happened to our key players (Aamir Sohail and Saqlain Mushtaq).”

Rashid said he would not step down from his post despite media criticism and reports that the cricket board planned to hire a foreign coach.

“If they (the cricket board)want to fire me, they can. But I wouldn’t step down because I feel I have contributed a lot in the season.”

Pakistan Cricket Board chief executive Majid Khan denied newspaper reports that he had offered Sri Lanka captain Arjuna Ranatunga the job as coach.

“I never made an offer to him or anyone in South Africa,” he was quoted as saying in the daily Dawn newspaper.

Sri Lanka’s leading newspaper Daily News had quoted Ranatunga as saying Khan had offered him the job.