Alam not the right person to coach Pakistan: Qasim Umar

Former Pakistan batsman Qasim Umar has held chief coach Intikhab Alam and his support staff responsible for the national team's continuing poor show and said the struggling Mohammad Yousuf-led side presently require a motivating figure to guide them.

Former Pakistan batsman Qasim Umar has held chief coach Intikhab Alam and his support staff responsible for the national team's continuing poor show and said the struggling Mohammad Yousuf-led side presently require a motivating figure to guide them.

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"He is not the right person to be the coach of the national team. I remember when I played under him. When he was manager and coach, he always used to run me down and call my selection a waste of money," Umar told PTI in an interview.

"I always did well in Australia and yet Intikhab tried to run me down. I would now like to ask him what he has to say about the performance of his players on the tour of Australia," he said.

"What I think they need is a planner and mentor figure, who can plan out things and motivate them to give their best performance," he added.

Umar, who played 26 Tests and 31 One-day Internationals in a career that ended in 1987 after he accused former captain Imran Khan and other players of smuggling drugs in their kit bags, said even the team's support staff was totally devoid of ideas.

"The support staff has nothing to contribute or offer to the players who have no proper guidance at all," he said.