PCB chief promises accountability after Mirpur debacle

'Every single member of the team and the management will be appraised,' says PCB Chairperson Najam Sethi.

KARACHI: A day after Pakistan’s humiliating defeat to West Indies and subsequent exit from the ICC T20 World Cup, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairperson Najam Sethi promised accountability to cricket fans on Wednesday, Express News reported.

Sethi promised to meet with both the team and the management to improve the team’s showing, which granted West Indies an 84-run win, their biggest ever margin of victory in T20 Internationals.

West Indies batted first and made an imposing total of 166-6 in their allotted 20 overs. Pakistan only managed to score 82 runs before being bowled out.

“Every single member of the team and the management will be appraised. We will identify each individual mistake and when it was made to ensure that the team works on them, and that they are not repeated,” Sethi said. At the same time, he managed to convey his faith in the team that had made it to the Asia Cup final just a few weeks ago.

I hear you all loud & clear. There will be accountability. But don't forget the same team defeated India in Asia Cup and Australia in T20.

— Najam Sethi (@najamsethi) April 2, 2014

Despite the result, it was more the manner of the defeat that irked viewers. After 15 overs of the West Indian innings, Pakistan had limited their batsmen to 84-5. Darren Sammy and Dwayne Bravo went on almost double that score in the last 5 remaining overs.

Visibly shaken from the onslaught, Pakistan invited pressure upon themselves as Ahmed Shehzad was caught leg before on the first ball of Pakistan’s innings. Pakistan hit only one boundary in the first 10 overs, and posted a score of 13 in the powerplay, the lowest by a full member team in T20 International cricket.

Pakistan now has a 5-month break until their next series.