'Coach abuses, scolds, beats up players...': Pakistan coach Aaqib Javed denies strict action in Champions Trophy horror

'Coach abuses, scolds, beats up players...': Pakistan coach Aaqib Javed denies strict action in Champions Trophy horror

Coach abuses, scolds, beats up players...': Pakistan coach Aaqib Javed denies strict action in Champions Trophy horror ByHT Sports Desk Feb 27, 2025 10:33 AM IST Share Via Copy Link Pakistan interim coach Aaqib Javed said he does not believe in the culture of scolding and abusing the players. He wants to help them improve.

Pakistan's interim head coach, Aaqib Javed, denied "scolding" the team's batters for their lack of intent in the Champions Trophy 2025 matches against New Zealand and India. Pakistan lost both matches to get knocked out of the tournament, and one of the main reasons behind that was the lack of intent shown by the top and middle order. Media reports claimed that Javed reserved some harsh words for the batters after their below-par show in the Champions but the former fast bowler denied them.

Aaqib Javed addresses the press before Bangladesh vs Pakistan match

Javed said he is not a believer in the culture of scolding and abusing the players. He instead wants to help them improve. "I don't scold the players at all. Because in our culture, the teacher scolds, beats, the coach scolds, and abuses. I don't believe in this. I respect players. You can help them. You can make them practice whatever they want. I am not the one who can scold people or say anything to them," Javed told reporters ahead of Pakistan's last Group A match against Bangladesh.

When pressed about Pakistan's scoring rate that hurt them dearly in this tournament, Javed said one shouldn't go out there with a preconceived target in mind because the conditions can dictate terms.

"We mix things up – Like in the T20 World Cup – 220 is a far-off target - we were not even scoring 120. So, overall, if you talk about cricket - there we scored 150-125 – there was no need to do 250. So, overall, we have to improve our game, and for that we need consistency."

Javed said there has to be consistency right from the board to the management to the players in order to achieve results. "Consistency in your cricket board, consistency in every aspect. Because if you look at the past 4-5 years, the changes that have come to the Cricket Board, until you will not let a policy run for a long term, you will not get consistency. We talk about the players; we compare them with other teams. You should compare the board also – until you don’t become consistent, till you don’t let a policy run for a long term, it will be difficult," he added.

This was the third consecutive ICC tournament where Pakistan failed to advance beyond the group stage. They finished fifth in ODI World Cup in 2023, were knocked out from the from the group stage after losing to USA in the T20 World Cup 2024 and now failed to advance to the semi-finals of the Champions Trophy.

"There are no excuses, and there shouldn’t be any. Like you see, this team, before the match, we all are hopeful and back the team also, but when the team plays and we don’t get favourable results, then the player who did not perform well will be the most disappointed. It’s obvious they are also hurt; they are also sorry about it. The message to the nation is that you can try and we can try to improve our team. There is no other solution," Javed said.