Losing six games on the trot in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) has taken its toll on Lahore Qalandars skipper Brendon McCullum.
McCullum’s men were handed a six-wicket defeat by Islamabad United on Thursday night and it seems to be the straw that has broken the camel’s back for the former Blackcaps star.
Speaking to the media after the loss, the 36-year-old said: “Ultimately as captain you’re responsible for the performances. I feel like I’ve done the same things that I do in any team that I’ve led, but unfortunately that hasn’t resonated.”
“So that’s the question we’ve got to ask tonight as well – whether it’s better offloading it to someone else and seeing if we can get better results.
“Doesn’t matter if you’re saying the right things, but if they’re not hitting home or the instructions aren’t being followed, then you’re always going to be pushing it uphill.”
A splendid unbeaten cameo of 33 runs from just 12 deliveries by the skipper had helped the Qalandars amass 163-8 in their 20 overs after batting first.
However, McCullum’s New Zealand counterpart Luke Ronchi’s 41-ball 77 saw Islamabad romp to a comfortable victory with more than two overs to spare.
McCullum insisted that the cause of defeat had been solely down to his bowlers and not the batting.
“I thought it was a very, very good batting performance, set up by Anton Devcich in his first game, and he showed how hungry, competitive people are able to prosper,” he said.
“What we did after that, I was really disappointed with, to be honest. It’s not what we’re about and I don’t mind losing, but you expect to be hard to beat. We’ve got some questions to ask tonight and that’s all the way through.”
With the Lahore out of contention for the eliminators with no points from their six games, the skipper believes a change of guard could be beneficial to the side.
“I don’t know what that is. It’s very hard on the support staff to prepare a team if guys aren’t prepared to listen, but if that’s the case, then we’re going to have to keep making changes, because there are young, enthusiastic guys in our team, which may be an opportunity, especially now since we’re out of the competition.” he said.
