Pakistan pacer Naseem Shah has condemned the increasing trend of personal attacks made on players, especially during trying times for the national side. His comments arrive at a time when Pakistan cricket has seen dismal performances recently, triggering severe criticism from former players and fans too. Naseem underlined that personal opinions can affect an individual’s confidence greatly and sought a constructive form of criticism.
Pakistan’s Woes in Terms of Performance and Accumulated Criticism
During Mohammad Rizwan’s leadership, Pakistan has encountered numerous setbacks in various big tournaments. The side was unable to advance past the group stage of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, which was held on home soil. Before that, they were ousted early from both the 2023 World Cup in ODIs and the 2024 World Cup in T20s. In addition to this, Pakistan was last placed in the current 2023-25 World Test Championship cycle. Such disappointing performances have elicited stern criticism from ex-players and die-hard fans alike, who have chosen to abandon performance-based analysis and descend into personal attacks instead.
Rejection of Personal Criticism of Naseem Shah
In a recent video released by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and reported by GeoSuper.tv, 22-year-old Naseem Shah spoke about the kind of criticism he and his teammates get regularly. While granting necessity for performance reports, he called for avoiding unjustified personal criticism.
“As a fan, if you watch cricket and someone says something that doesn’t make sense to you, you might think, ‘Oh, this person has never played cricket.’ When we go home, even our own brothers sometimes make comments that make us say, ‘Yeah, okay, they’ve never played cricket,'” Naseem Shah said.
He went on to say, “But when it comes to players who have actually played cricket for 10-15 years, you can discuss their performance—talk about how someone isn’t bowling well, isn’t batting well, or what mistakes they’re making. That’s fine. You can analyze what can be improved. However, I feel that getting too personal—commenting on how someone styles their hair or how they speak—crosses the line. These things hit personally.
Impact of Naseem Shah as a Concussion Substitute
Even though he was not part of the playing XI for the second ODI against New Zealand, Naseem acted as a concussion replacement for Haris Rauf and performed incredibly well. The young pacer scored a swift 51 off 44 balls in a game Pakistan ultimately lost by 84 runs. His unexpected contribution highlighted his pressure-fighting capability as well as being ability to act in the moment.
Fans’ Passion and Thin Line of Criticism
Despite being omitted from the T20I squad during the New Zealand series, he remains in Pakistan’s ODI setup. Talking about the kind of criticism players face, he recognized the immense passion fans have for cricket. “Fans make comments, and that’s understandable because they watch cricket passionately. Even when we were kids, we would criticize the team when they lost. But if you’ve played cricket for 15 years and still make comments that have nothing to do with the game, it does hurt,” he remarked.
With Pakistan trying to rebuild and return to the game in international cricket, Naseem’s words highlight the importance of separating good criticism from useless personal attacks. Being one of the young hopes of the team, he continues, demanding a healthier conversation of the sport and its players.
