The legendary Wasim Akram was left unimpressed after only a handful of spectators turned up during the first T20I between Pakistan and West Indies in Karachi on Monday, and demanded an answer from the PCB for the debacle. With New Zealand calling off their tour earlier this year, followed by the abandonment from England as well, Pakistan hosted an international match against the West Indies, but surprisingly, the stadium remained mostly empty through the match.
What did not go down well for Akram was the fact that despite Pakistan's incredible show at the T20 World Cup, where they finished semi-finalists, only a selected few turned out, forcing the former Pakistan captain to question the board for managing the situation poorly.
"Incredibly sad to see an empty stadium in Karachi for the #PAKvWIt20 especially after the performance of Pakistan Team in the last month. I'm pretty sure I know why but I want to hear from you! Tell me, where is the crowd and why??," Akram tweeted.
A tweet that surfaced on social media showed one of the fans complaining about poor management. The fan said that there was no clarity as to when will people be allowed to enter the stadiums and that there was no one responsible enough to provide any sort of update. People had travelled from long distances and had to wait outside the stadiums for as long as three hours.
{{/usCountry}}A tweet that surfaced on social media showed one of the fans complaining about poor management. The fan said that there was no clarity as to when will people be allowed to enter the stadiums and that there was no one responsible enough to provide any sort of update. People had travelled from long distances and had to wait outside the stadiums for as long as three hours.
{{/usCountry}}Addressing the tweet, Akram said: "This is VERY concerning. This is not a backyard game this is an International Series."
In the first T20I, Pakistan beat West Indies comprehensively by 63 runs, with Mohammad Rizwan and Haider Ali emerging as the stars with the bat, scoring half-centuries. With the ball, it was the young Mohammad Wasim Jr. who grabbed 4/40, which comprised him producing a lethal yorker to dismiss West Indies captain Nicholas Pooran and get Twitter talking.