Former Pakistan head coach Mickey Arthur has backed the bold plans of his successor Mike Hesson and captain Salman Agha, who left out former skippers Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan for the Asia Cup 2025. Arthur said the decision reflects the need to match the Twenty20 style of top teams like India and Australia.
Mike is an unbelievably good coach, and I respect him a lot. I am sure he will do a wonderful job for Pakistan. I think the game has changed. The T20 game has changed, and in terms of the skillset, you have to change with the times, and that’s no slight on Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan because they are incredibly good players.
A Difficult Call, but a Clear Vision
Arthur noted that Hesson and Agha were selecting players who best fit their long-term vision.
Obviously Mike and Salman Agha are trying to get a vision and brand they want to play, and they are selecting the personnel that are at their disposal to be able to execute that brand of play.
I do know that Babar is an incredible player and will be for a long time for Pakistan, but I also do like the way that Hesson and Salman have gone in having a vision much like Saifi (Sarfaraz Ahmed) and I had, and they are selecting the players that they think fit their plan and style of play. Lessons from Arthur’s Era Arthur drew parallels to his own coaching stint when Pakistan climbed to world No.1 in T20Is. He attributed that success to a strong game plan alongside then-captain Sarfaraz Ahmed.
“Under my coaching, we became world No.1 in T20Is. I think we won 11 series in a row. Sarfaraz and I did a lot of work and formulated a plan on how we could win with the resources at our disposal,” he recalled.
Their approach centred on bowling strength. “We decided that we must get to around 160, and then we knew we could defend that with the kind of bowling attack we had in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. That plan even worked in New Zealand. We had good death bowling with Mohammad Amir and Shaheen Shah Afridi, while Shadab and Imad handled the middle overs. That structure gave us results.”
The team then started to slump because they did not have a brand. When there’s no clear brand, people don’t know what they’re playing for — and they end up playing for themselves.
India and Australia Show the Way
Arthur believes Pakistan’s new leadership is right to look at global benchmarks. "I think all teams have progressed at a good level in T20 cricket, and the brand of cricket has changed over a couple of years. Australia and India have led the way with their attacking batting and wicket-taking bowling. I think that is the formula for success,” he said.
