Srinagar: Pakistan batter Fakhar Zaman and pacer Naseem Shah have said that personal comments that has nothing to do with cricket, does hurt players.
In an Eid special video released by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), Naseem addressed the nature of criticism that players often receive, emphasizing the difference between constructive analysis and personal attacks.
“As a fan, if you watch cricket and someone says something that doesn’t make sense to you, you might think, ‘Oh, this person has never played cricket.’ When we go home, even our own brothers sometimes make comments that make us say, ‘Yeah, okay, they’ve never played cricket,'” Naseem remarked.
“But when it comes to players who have actually played cricket for 10-15 years, you can discuss their performance—talk about how someone isn’t bowling well, isn’t batting well, or what mistakes they’re making. That’s fine,” he said.
“You can analyze what can be improved. However, I feel that getting too personal—commenting on how someone styles their hair or how they speak—crosses the line. These things hit personally,” he added.
The right-arm pacer’s remarks align with those of Fakhar Zaman, who also appeared in the video and spoke about respecting former cricketers despite their criticisms.
“Fakhar Zaman mentioned that we look up to them as legends. So, should we start ignoring them just because they make personal remarks? Should we stop listening to them altogether, even when they have something meaningful to say?” Naseem questioned.
“Fans make comments, and that’s understandable because they watch cricket passionately. Even when we were kids, we’d criticize the team when they lost. But if you’ve played cricket for 15 years and still make comments that have nothing to do with the game, it does hurt,” Shah said concluded.