Report: Waqar says Afridi is immature

Pakistan cricket coach Waqar Younis has come down hard at beleaguered Shahid Afridi, allegedly saying the ex-captain is immature and has a destabilising effect.
In a tour report published in the Daily Dawn newspaper, Waqar said Afridi's "volatile and immature nature" during the series against the West Indies was the prime reason behind Pakistan's two defeats in the series.

Mincing no words, Waqar said Afridi "behaved very inappropriately and walked out of the team meetings" held before the fourth and the fifth ODI, causing defeats in both even as Pakistan went on to win the series 3-2.

The PCB removed Afridi as captain after the series, suspended his central contract and revoked No Objection Certificates that would have allowed him to play for other teams.
Afridi was set to play for Hamphire and was in England for the same but he was forced to make a return as the Board refused to grant him a certificate.
The sacked skipper has already declared that he will not take part in the disciplinary committee hearing since he feels the PCB is being unfair to his cause.
Paskistan fans say the Board is carrying out some sort of an agenda against the maverick player and they came out in large numbers to receive Afridi, who landed in Karachi on Monday night from Hamphire.

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Waqar meets Butt to discuss the WI tour

Pakistan cricket team head coach Waqar Younis on Friday met the Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board Ijaz Butt to discuss all the developments that took place in the team during the tour of the West Indies.
The coach had specially flown down to Pakistan with the national team from Ireland on the instructions of the Board rather than flying straight to his home in Sydney, Australia.
The PCB had made it clear to Waqar that Butt wanted to meet him to discuss the spat that took place between him and former limited overs national team skipper Shahid Afridi during the tour of the Caribbean.
Pakistan's sacked captain Shahid Afridi had accused Waqar of interfering in his domain publicly, which eventually led to the former's removal as captain last month before the two-match ODI series against Ireland.
After being axed as captain, Afridi announced his retirement from international cricket earlier this week and started a strong campaign against the PCB and the team management.
"The meeting between Waqar and Butt was a healthy one and the coach made it clear that he had never tried to interfere in the domain of the captain but was there to support him," one source said.
"Waqar told the Chairman that in his opinion Afridi had over-reacted in the whole issue as the two had worked together in the past and done well," the source added.
The source also said that Waqar, however, had made it clear to PCB Chief that as a head coach he had certain responsibilities to fulfill and a stature to look after and he was not happy with the way Afridi had behaved in the last two One-day Internationals in the West Indies and then in the media.
After meeting Butt, Waqar left for Australia. Before leaving he told reporters that he was disappointed and upset at the way Afridi had lashed out at the team management.
"I had a good meeting with the Chairman and I have also submitted my tour report to him. I have no doubt that this is such a big issue that it could not be resolved across the table. I am surprised at the reaction of Afridi and his behavior in the last few days."
Waqar said he appreciated the work Afridi had done in lifting the team since last year but couldn't understand his behavior off-late.
He also admitted that there were differences of opinion on selection matters with Afridi.
"There is always difference of opinion on selection matters and that is nothing new. But I have never tried to interfere in his domain and only do what my job as head coach is. I really don't know about what he means when he says I have tried to interfere in his work because as coach I know well what my job description is," Waqar explained.
"I have never tried to push him or interfere in his domain. There is nothing personal between us and we have worked well together since last year. I don't think there was a need to make such a big issue out of all this," he added.
Waqar also described Afridi as a good captain but at the same time noted that Misbah-ul-Haq had led the team well in the West Indies Test series and in Ireland.

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Waqar denies Afridi rift

Pakistan coach Waqar Younis has denied claims that he interfered with Shahid Afridi's work as captain.
Afridi has retired, temporarily at least, from international cricket after losing the one-day captaincy to Misbah-ul-Haq - a move he saw as a humiliation by the Pakistan Cricket Board.

Reports have attributed that decision to a breakdown in relations between Waqar and Afridi.

The coach has said the first he heard of any rift was in the media and declared himself happy with Afridi's leadership.

He told the Associated Press of Pakistan: "As a coach I have my own domain and I know my job description and I never interfered in Afridi's job nor in selection affairs.

"Afridi was a good captain and I was satisfied with his captaincy. I have my own mindset and I always try to concentrate on my job and I will follow the same in future as well as long as I am the coach of the team."

The enigmatic all-rounder, who retired from Test cricket shortly after assuming the captaincy in that format last summer, was due to represent Hampshire in the Friends Life t20 but has had his No Objection Certificate withdrawn by the PCB as a result of the current row.

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