Zaheer Abbas gives his two cents on Pakistan's cricket downfall

'Asian Bradman' expresses concern that Pakistan has stopped producing legends

International Cricket Council (ICC) president Zaheer Abbas has said a lack of opportunities and exposure has landed Pakistan cricket in hot waters.

"Our players are not getting the right opportunities and exposure,” said Abbas. “They are also not in the Indian Premier League. I feel sorry for the young players who can't play international cricket or against touring sides at home.”

The ‘Asian Bradman’ expressed his concern that Pakistan cricket has stopped producing legends for the young players to look up to.

"For a country which has a rich cricketing history and legacy, it saddens me to see the state of affairs today,” he said. “It is sad that a country which has produced so many legends now has to even think about playing in qualifying rounds of an ICC event.”

He added: “It pains me to see that the national team is now not producing quality performances of the past. Our players are just not producing the sort of performances we expect and saw in the past. In the past our youngsters had a lot of idols and legends to look up to and emulate and today we look towards the Indian players.”

The 68-year-old, who will step down from his ICC post on July 27 after one-year tenure, said Pakistan cricket has still not recovered from the aftereffects of the attack on the Sri Lankan team in 2009.

"It will take time for international cricket to return to Pakistan and lot depends on what the situation is in the country in future. But I am optimistic that in this context the scenario is improving," he said.

He said he had enjoyed his tenure as ICC President and learnt a lot.

"I have done all I can to help the Pakistan Cricket Board convince other boards they need to support Pakistan cricket by sending their teams and things are looking up a bit."

Zaheer Abbas was quoted by Press Trust of India

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