‘It’s always in chaos’ – Matthew Hayden blames Pakistan cricket system for squandering natural talent

Legendary Matthew Hayden has criticised Pakistan’s cricket system for failing to provide a stable environment where the country’s exceptional talent can flourish. The former Australian batter, who represented his country in 101 Tests and 161 ODIs across a 15-year illustrious international career, worked with Pakistan as a batting consultant at the 2021 T20 World Cup and later as a mentor during the 2022 T20 World Cup.

His comments come after Pakistan sacked head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed and bowling coach Umar Gul following a second successive defeat in a three-Test series at Lord’s in late August 2026, and subsequently asked seven players to return home.

Hayden reflected on his experience working within Pakistan’s cricket structure during a recent appearance. The leadership duo of Mohsin Naqvi and Aaqib Javed has been making decisions for Pakistan cricket over the last couple of years, overseeing a period marked by instability and frequent changes.

“I really enjoyed my time working with Pakistan. Nothing’s changed, though. You know, that is always the trouble. That’s not an environment, you know; a pressure cooker is an environment for the middle, not for all the other peripheral things that happen outside. And it’s just too difficult an environment to be consistent because this is the formula,” Hayden was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times.

Why Pakistan’s system prevents consistency

The former batter emphasised that Pakistan possesses extraordinary natural ability but remains unable to harness it effectively. Despite winning the World Cup in 1992 and the T20 World Cup in 2009, Pakistan has struggled to maintain consistency at the highest level. Hayden pointed to the fundamental issue of how the system operates rather than questioning the quality of individual players.

“Pakistan are always the dark horse because their natural talent is phenomenal. I mean, anyone who can see athletic ability can see that Pakistan has an abundance of it. The trouble is, it never gets focused because it’s never allowed to get focused. It’s always in chaos. They’re always standing on one toe, let alone two feet. So there’s no grounding. And that’s, you know, something that I did enjoy doing in the short time that I was with Pakistan. It’s just getting things back on an even keel and not so frantic. So it’s very difficult for them,” Hayden added.

How Hayden sees Pakistan’s untapped potential

Hayden drew a parallel between Pakistan and the West Indies, citing both nations as examples of countries with exceptional sporting talent that remains constrained by systemic issues. He stressed that the problem extends beyond individual performances or tactical decisions. The former opener highlighted how administrative and environmental factors create obstacles that prevent consistent excellence.

“Pakistan is like the West Indies, who I specially mentioned, I would especially mention Pakistan as well, because you’ve got 350 million people in one country that adore cricket, and yet every opportunity, cricket doesn’t allow cricket to get played. And that old saying, it’s just not cricket, that is so important for this conversation with Pakistan. Because if you allow Pakistan and Pakistan allows Pakistan to just play freely and with trust, then they’ll take on anyone, as simple as that, because purely their athletic ability, like the West Indies, is supreme,” Hayden concluded.

Hayden’s assessment suggests that structural reform within Pakistan’s cricket administration would be necessary to unlock the potential that exists within the player pool.