Mohammad Yousuf alleges Pakistan stars of getting overconfident [Source: ABsay_ek/X.com]Pakistan's first-ever win over India in the T20 World Cup in 2021 made a huge stir at the time. Led by Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan's opening pair, they had chased down 152 runs without losing a wicket in Dubai. However, they have failed to capitalise on that historic win and constantly fallen short at the hands of India, including the recent 61-run loss in Colombo.Following the sustained run of failures against the arch-rivals, former Pakistan coach Mohammad Yousuf has called out the big players for overconfidence after that win. According to him, the complacent behaviour of some stars has led to the downfall of Pakistan cricket and has made some suggestions for the players.Mohammad Yousuf makes telling claims about Pakistan starsThe 2021 win in Dubai saw players like Shaheen Afridi, who picked 3/31, Babar Azam (68* off 52) and Mohammad Rizwan (79* off 55) getting a lot of plaudits. The players were being compared to the greats of the game, including Babar's comparisons with Virat Kohli, who was in a lean form.During former batting coach Yousuf's recent interview, without taking names, he revealed that the players started believing in their hype and got overconfident. Furthermore, he felt they were being disrespectful towards the coach by using phones and not staying attentive to what was being told to them."After the win against India in 2021, a lot of players started thinking that no one is better than us. They became disrespectful. When your head coach is speaking, someone is using their phone & someone else is looking here & there. You have to stay grounded," Mohammad Yousuf said at How Does it Work podcast.Downfall of Pakistan's star playersGoing by Mohammad Yousuf's statement, the key players who did well in the match include the likes of Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan and Shaheen Afridi. All three star players have been under the scanner since and have failed to perform, especially in T20I cricket.Since the aforementioned win against India in 2021, the big Pakistan players have constantly failed to deliver in crunch situations. In the 2022-26 period, Babar Azam has only struck 146.1 in 2023 and 133.2 in 2024 in the T20Is. In all other years, his T20I strike rate has been between 114.4 and 123.3, which is considered poor in modern-T20 cricket.Speaking about the other star batter, Rizwan, who is no longer a part of the T20I side, he has gotten runs at a strike rate of 123, 139.7 and 117.3 in the 2022 to 2024 period. Babar and Rizwan also recorded some of the worst BBL strike rates in their recent stints with Sydney Sixers and Melbourne Renegades, respectively, becoming a laughing stock.Since the 2021 win, Shaheen has also consistently conceded runs at a high economy rate. His T20I economy read 8.72, 8.13, 7.43 and a whopping 9.73 since the time. He was also India's prime target in the recent T20 World Cup match in Colombo, conceding 31 in 2 overs.Pakistan's poor record vs India since the 2021 winAfter the 10-wicket win in Dubai, 2021, Pakistan have faced India in 12 encounters, one of which was rained out. In the other 11 matches, Pakistan have been shockingly bad against the arch-rivals. They have only won a solitary T20I in the Asia Cup 2022 and lost 10 of the other matches.These losses include a failed 119-run chase in 2024, leading to a group stage exit in the T20 World Cup, a loss in the home Champions Trophy and three embarrassing losses in the Asia Cup 2025.Looking at the numbers and results, it is highly possible that Mohammad Yousuf's statement wasn't just a blind agenda but had some personal experience behind it. Notably, Yousuf was appointed as the batting coach of the team in March 2025 but shockingly resigned from his duties just months later in June and refused to elaborate on the reasoning behind it.
