Rashid Latif Criticizes PCB After Pakistan's Lord's Defeat

Rashid Latif has lit a bonfire under Pakistan cricket’s power structure, accusing the Pakistan Cricket Board of presiding over the “worst” era in its history after another bruising defeat in England.

Pakistan were outplayed by 194 runs in the second Test at Lord’s, a result that handed England an unassailable 2–0 lead in the three-match series and left the tourists looking lost, out of ideas and badly out of their depth.

The numbers are damning. Across the series so far, Pakistan have not managed a single total of 200. Their batting has frayed, then crumbled, leaving the bowlers exposed and the contest lopsided. It has prompted sections of the British media to brand this the “worst Pakistan side in the last 50 years”.

Latif, never one to duck a short ball, agreed with the sentiment — but insisted the rot runs much deeper than the dressing room.

“Everyone is talking about the Pakistan team, and how it is the worst touring team in the last 50 years,” he said on Geo News. “But nobody is speaking about how the current board is the worst in the last 70 years. Nobody is talking about the worst selection committee and coaches.”

He did not stop there.

“If you combine these issues, you will get the answer to your question. You will know who has ruined this team. Now you are losing consistently. This is the worst cricket board, that's a fact.”

Batting in freefall, captain under the spotlight

On the field, the crisis is most obvious with the bat. Pakistan’s top order has repeatedly folded, their middle order has failed to repair the damage, and any notion of resistance has been fleeting at best. Every innings has followed a familiar pattern: early wickets, nervous rebuild, sudden collapse.

The return of Babar Azam at Lord’s was supposed to steady the ship. He had missed the opening Test, and his comeback carried the quiet hope that his presence alone might lend authority and calm to a fragile line-up.

Instead, it only underlined how deep the problems run.

Babar scratched his way to scores of just 8 and 6, never looking in control. His second-innings dismissal cut the sharpest figure: Jofra Archer banged in a hostile bouncer, and the Pakistan captain looked visibly uncomfortable against the short ball before his exit. For a player of his class, and for a team leaning so heavily on him, it was a brutal image.

Pakistan now head to the final Test with their batting in tatters and their leader searching for answers as much as runs.

Off-field storm at Lord’s

As if the on-field unraveling was not enough, the Lord’s Test simmered with controversy away from the middle.

Sky Sports aired an 18-minute interview with Sulaiman and Kasim Khan, the sons of former Pakistan captain and prime minister Imran Khan. They spoke about their father’s situation and treatment while he remains in prison, an emotive subject that inevitably spilled into the cricketing arena.

Reports then surfaced claiming the PCB had threatened to pull Pakistan out of the Test if the interview went to air. The suggestion was explosive: a national board allegedly ready to walk away from a Lord’s Test over a broadcast decision.

Babar Azam and head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed, however, both said they were unaware of any such plan. The team took the field as scheduled, and the match proceeded without disruption.

On the scoreboard, there was no twist. England completed a comprehensive victory, tightening their grip on the series and deepening the sense of drift around Pakistan.

Now the caravan moves to Birmingham and Edgbaston, where the third and final Test begins on September 9. The series is gone. The questions, for Pakistan and their board, are only just beginning.