'You will never see Gavaskar criticising Dravid': Ramiz Raja's scathing attack on Shoaib Akhtar for Babar Azam remark

When asked further about Akhtar's dream of becoming the next PCB chairman, Raja took a brutal dig at the Pakistan legend.

Former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar recently made a bizarre remark while explaining why incumbent Pakistan skipper Babar Azam is not a brand like Virat Kohli. In an interview with a local Pakistani channel, Akhtar did not just launch an attack on Babar, but the entire Pakistan side for lacking character and not knowing how to speak in English. The comments did not go down well with cricket fans across the globe, including former PCB chairman Ramiz Raja who lashed out Akhtar, calling him "delusional".

Ramiz Raja; Shoaib Akhtar

Pointing out towards the poor communication skills among Pakistan cricketers, including Babar, Akhtar had said: "Abhi aap dekh le, koi character nahi team mein. Naa koi baat karne ka tarika. (You can see there's no character in the team, nor they know how to talk). How awkward it looks when they come to the presentation. Kitna mushkil hai English seekhna aur baat krna? (How difficult is it to learn and speak English?). Cricket is one job, and handling media is another. If you can’t speak, I am sorry, but you won’t be able to express yourself on TV. I want to openly say that Babar Azam should be the biggest brand in Pakistan, but why hasn't he become the biggest brand in Pakistan? Because he can’t speak."

Blasting Akhtar for his remarks, Ramiz explained that no other former cricketer of any country would degrade their own players, exemplifying his notion through a 'Gavaskar-Dravid' statement.

Speaking on BOL Network a Pakistan local channel Raja said, “Shoaib Akhtar is a delusional superstar. He also had an issue recently with Kamran Akmal. He wants everyone to become a brand, but it is more important to become a human first. First, become a human and then a brand,”

“Our former players degrade our cricket brand by giving delusional statements. You will never see that happening in our neighbouring country. You will never see Sunil Gavaskar criticizing Rahul Dravid. It only happens in Pakistan, where former players don’t let others do their job professionally," he added.

When asked further about Akhtar's dream of becoming the next PCB chairman, Raja took a brutal dig at the Pakistan legend.

“He needs to get a graduate degree first in order to become eligible for the chairmanship of PCB." he said.