145;Team India has a communication problem146;

8220;A captain has every right to demand a wicket according to his team8217;s strengths. But once the wicket is ready, you should just go out and play your best on it. There is no point in dragging the issue beyond that. A champion side must perform under any condition,8221; he said talking to reporters here.

Wasim, however, did comment that the fault lay more with the team management than the ground staff at the stadium. 8220;Planning is most important. A team must do its homework before a series starts, not go about making demands in the middle of it,8221; he said, implying that the management 8212; which includes the coach and the captain 8212; did not do their job the way they should have.

8220;No doubt, Australia are a champion side. But Ganguly should have said very clearly, before they arrived, what kind of pitches he needed at every venue. I feel the biggest problem with the Indian team at the moment is a complete lack of internal communication.8217;8217;

That is a strong statement, coming as it does at a time when there is more than enough talk of politics and individual rivalry within the squad. But Akram is quick to point out that ther can be no scapegoats for the loss. 8216;8216;The team management is not just the playing eleven or sixteen and the coach. It includes the entire cricket borad, the various state associations, the ground staff, the curator, everyone. And a clear interaction between everyone is the only way to produce a cohesive and winning unit8217;8217;, he said.

Akram also took a dig at coach John Wright for his seemingly passive role when it came to handling certain issues. 8216;8216;The coach is not just there to instruct his players on their game, or take charge during team meetings to try and iron out flaws. If it is the duty of the captain to make his choice of wicket clear, it is up to the coach to follow it up and make sure his captain, and the team, gets the wicket they want. He cannot just be a backstage observer any more.8217;8217;

However, he was full of praise for Irfan Pathan and Ajit Akarkar and their 8216;individual performances8217;. 8216;8216;People raised a hue and cry when they said I coached Pathan. But coaching is not my area of interest. I can only give tips, based on my experience, to anyone who is interested. But if Irfan can improve so much by just after a couple of meetings with me, it is to his credit, not mine. Even Agarkar is a great bowler, if you ask me. He can bowl really well, bat well, and also field, but remains out of the team.8217;8217;