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Sana Mir was upset with the gender criticism of Pakistan women’s national cricket team after their poor performance in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 in England. Sana Mir admitted that Pakistan players did not live up to the expectations, but the way the fans are targeting the team has crossed the limit, which would never happen with the men’s team.
The Pakistan women’s national cricket team ended their ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 campaign with a 37-run win over the Netherlands in Bristol on Saturday, June 27. However, Pakistan’s exit from the mega event was already decided after four consecutive defeats against India, South Africa, Australia and Bangladesh.
Sana Mir defends Pakistan team, says fans have crossed limits after ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 disaster
Pakistani fans were disappointed by the embarrassing campaign and they started targeting the players with sexist and harsh comments on social media. Sana Mir believes that there is a clear difference in the way Pakistan men’s and women’s teams are treated after the defeat.
The former captain said that when the men’s team loses, people criticize their cricket, but when the women’s team fails, people only bring gender into the discussion instead of talking about their performance on the field.
PTI quoted Sana Mir as saying, “I see double standards when talking about the performance of the men’s and women’s teams. I don’t agree with the tone of the criticism. Yes, the team has not lived up to expectations, but just because it is a women’s team, why add a sexist tone to it?”
Sana Mir criticizes disrespect towards Pakistani women cricketers; Demand for change in mentality
The former captain, who is currently working as a commentator during the ongoing ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026, stressed that she is also disappointed with Pakistan’s performance, but she is more hurt by the disrespect shown towards the women players.
She urged people to understand the difficulties faced by girls who dream of becoming professional cricketers in Pakistan. He said that many players have to overcome family and social challenges before getting a chance to play for the national team.
She said that it took years to prove that Pakistan women could compete against the best teams, yet the team still does not get the same respect as the men’s team. Sana said that if women’s cricket has to progress in Pakistan then people will have to change their mentality.
Sana said, “Even after so many years, we do not give the women’s team the required respect while discussing its performance. Our players could not perform as we expected. It took many years to convince everyone that Pakistan girls have the potential to cause an upset. Unless we change this mentality, we will get nowhere.”
Sana Mir criticizes fake AI videos, calls for stronger structure
The former cricketer also expressed concern over the use of AI-generated videos on social media after fake videos mocking Pakistani cricketers and spreading fake information went viral. He said that the AI video has hurt the players a lot and their family members have also suffered a lot.
Sana also believes that Pakistan needs more domestic tournaments and a larger pool of talented players. He said that currently there is not enough competition for places in the national team and this impacts the mentality and overall performance of the players.
