Naqvi Says Cricketers Stop Working Hard After Gaining Fame
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi has said that cricketers tend to stop working hard after gaining fame, stressing that sustained effort is essential to succeed at the highest level.
Naqvi, addressing the media at a Lahore Qalandars event in Lahore on Saturday, said he had personally observed several cricketers stop working hard after gaining some recognition, and that the sport demands continuous effort.
He further emphasised that the trait often results in some very talented players falling short of their potential.
What Naqvi actually said
“I have seen a lot of cricketers who leave their hard work when they get a little bit of fame. This is a game in which you have to work continuously. And your very good players come to the team and get wasted,” Naqvi told reporters.
He also questioned the need to teach some players fundamental skills after their selection in the national team from a large pool of talent, pointing to the country’s population.
“We have faced it ourselves. Being in the national team, we are teaching them. The coaches used to tell me that we are teaching them this and that,” Naqvi said.
“You are a nation of 24 crore people. If you are picking 14 people out of that, if you have to teach them as well, then what is the point?”
The argument is a simple one. With a population of 240 million to choose from, the national team should be selecting finished players, not players who still need to be taught the basics after selection. Whether that is fair to players who come through a weak domestic structure is a separate question, and Naqvi did not address it in the remarks reported.
Not aimed at any individual
The PCB chairman clarified that his observation was not aimed at any specific individual, and instead termed it as the cricket board’s shortcomings.
“These were our mistakes. I am not saying this to anyone. These were our own mistakes. We have corrected ourselves. And we will continue this,” Naqvi said.
“And I hope that if we all work together, we will get good results.”
That framing matters. By describing the problem as the board’s own mistake rather than naming players, Naqvi avoided a public row with any individual cricketer. At the same time, he left no doubt about the standard he expects: players in the national team should keep working as hard after selection as they did before it.
Why the timing matters
The remarks come in the middle of a busy home season for Pakistan cricket. The ODI tri-series against England and Sri Lanka is under way, with Pakistan chasing a place in the October 31 final at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. A new-look Test squad for the home series against Sri Lanka has also been announced, with Salman Ali Agha returning to the side.
That is the context in which Naqvi’s words will be read by players and fans. When a board chairman talks about hard work and wasted talent while a squad is being picked and a final place is at stake, every player in and around the team will hear a message about selection. Naqvi said he was not talking about anyone in particular. The timing means the message will still be heard personally.
