KARACHI: Leading cricket organiser and former first-class wicket-keeper Zaheer Ahmed said on Friday that skipper Misbah-ul-Haq’s record-breaking performance in the UAE during the Test series against Australia and New Zealand — both as batsman and captain — should forever silence the arm-chair critics who were earlier gunning for his head without any solid reason.

Offering his heartfelt greetings to Misbah for his tremendous show in the recent series which saw the 40-year-old skipper breaking all-time Pakistan record of highest Test wins and equalling Sir Vivian Richards’ world record of the fastest century, Zaheer said he had never lost faith in Misbah’s abilities along with millions of Pakistan fans.

“All these so-called critics and former cricketers who had been maligning Misbah on television and in press, are now eating their own words and should, in fact, say sorry to the Pakistan captain for all the mud-slinging,” said Zaheer in a statement released to the press. “Misbah has joined the greats of the game with his brilliant feats which have been acknowledged by living legend Sir Viv Richards himself recently.”

Zaheer added that criticism for personal gains never pays and these critics should realise this now and start thinking on constructive lines about Pakistan cricket. “I have always maintained that we should support Pakistan cricket no matter what because this is our team and our country,” said Zaheer who is also the owner of Dollar East team who have done very well in Grade II cricket for the past couple of seasons.

He also congratulated Younis Khan, Azhar Ali, Ahmed Shahzad, Sarfraz Ahmed and the other players for bringing laurels to the country with their excellent performance against Australia and New Zealand.

He also urged the PCB to conduct a proper talent hunt in the various cities to select youngsters who can provide solid back-up to the national players in the years to come.

Published in Dawn, November 15th, 2014