Junaid Khan: “They think they know everything, and that’s why their performance level is going down”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Former Pakistan left-arm seamer Junaid Khan has slammed the current pace attack, saying their performances haven’t been up to par since “they think they know everything”.
During the 2025 Champions Trophy, Pakistan’s pace trio of Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf all picked up two wickets in two matches at an average of 71, 50 and 67.50 respectively.
Following this, Pakistan embarked on a tour of New Zealand and in the five-match T20I series, Rauf was the top wicket-taker for the men in green with eight wickets in four games at an average of 12.25.
Afridi, meanwhile, finished with two wickets in four matches at an average of 66.50.
As for Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Ali and Jahandad Khan, they ended up claiming three wickets in two games at an average of 20.66, one wicket in three matches at an average of 86, and one wicket in three games at an average of 82.
In the three-match ODI series, Rauf and Naseem took three wickets apiece at an average of 37.66 and 38 respectively.
While other players like Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Faheem Ashraf and Irfan Khan chipped in with two to three wickets, it was Akif Javed who ended up being Pakistan’s top speedster as he took seven wickets in three matches at an average of 23.57.
Despite some players like Rauf and Akif putting up strong performances, Junaid reiterated that a lot can be improved when it comes to Pakistan’s pace attack.
“They think they know everything, and that’s why their performance level is going down,” Junaid was quoted as saying by respected journalist Saj Sadiq on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Right now, a lot of the national players are in action in the 2025 Pakistan Super League (PSL).
PSL 10 was postponed midway through due to Pakistan’s border tensions with India, but the tournament ultimately ended up resuming and is scheduled to conclude on May 25.