Published By: Basu’s retirement
Last Updated: Apr 08, 2023, 1:09 PM IST
Kamran Akmal and Babar Azam (Twitter)
Kamran Akmal believes that his brother Umar Akmal still deserves a chance to don the Pakistan jersey
Kamran Akmal may not be playing in the international arena anymore but his sensational allegations, in recent times, have done more than enough to rattle Pakistan cricket. In his latest argument, Kamran has accused Pakistan skipper Babar Azam of focussing on “personal agendas” while selecting the squad. Kamran also felt that his brother- Umran Akmal- has not been treated well by Pakistan cricket. Kamran believes that Umar still deserves a chance to don the Pakistan jersey. “Keep your personal agendas aside, drafting a team should be about putting Pakistan first, not personal agendas or preferences,” the wicketkeeper said, as per Cricket Pakistan.
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“Teams shouldn’t be based on liking or disliking. Umar deserves to be part of the team. Change of faces at higher levels should come with change of approach and selection criteria. I don’t think they’re dealing with Umar appropriately. He deserves to play for the national side,” Kamran Akmal added.
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In international cricket, Umar Akmal was last seen in action in October 2019. The Lahore-born was dismissed for a duck in that T20I match against Sri Lanka. Overall, he has played 16 Tests, 121 ODIs and 84 T20Is for Pakistan. Despite possessing immense talent, Umar’s stint in international circuit has often been mired in controversy. Umar scored a sublime century in his Test debut against New Zealand in November 2009. But his form dipped in 2010. A year later he was even noticed a showcause notice for giving interviews without obtaining permission. With 1003 runs in 30 innings, Umar has an average of 35.82 in Tests. In T20I cricket, Umar has a terrific strike rate of 122.73.
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Pakistan selectors, however, did not deem Umar Akmal’s performance in white-ball cricket adequate enough to name him in the T20I and ODI squads for the series against New Zealand. Pakistan captain Babar Azam, wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan and pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi are set to return to the squad for the white-ball series against New Zealand. Big names like- Babar, Rizwan, Fakhar Zaman and Haris Rauf- were rested for the T20I series against Afghanistan in Sharjah last month.
The five-match T20I series between Pakistan and New Zealand is scheduled to get underway from April 14. After the completion of the T20I series, the two teams will be involved in a five-match ODI series.
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