Former Pakistan captain and selector Inzamam-ul-Haq has revealed his favorites for Pakistan’s T20 World Cup squad. He requested Mohammad Amir to come out of retirement and play for the Men in Green.
Mohammad Amir had announced his retirement from all formats of the game in December 2020 citing differences with the team management. The pacer announced later on that he is ready to make a comeback if his problems are addressed.
Inzamam-ul-Haq asked Amir to discuss his issues with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and reconsider his decision to retire for the benefit of the Pakistan side.
Inzamam-ul-Haq said on his YouTube channel, “Mohammad Amir could also have been considered. But he has actually announced his retirement. There could have been some experience in the fast bowling department. But it shouldn’t be like I won’t play for this management. You can get your concerns recorded, you can share the issues with the Board. You could have tried playing after that. It is a different matter if you don’t want to play, it is your decision.”
The former Pakistan legendary batsman selected his 15-man squad for the T20 World Cup without considering Amir. Here’s the squad that Inzamam has selected :
Babar Azam, Sharjeel Khan, Shan Masood, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Asif Ali, Shadab Khan, Imad Wasim, Usman Qadir, Faheem Ashraf, Hassan Ali, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Wasim Jr., Shaheen Afridi
A big surprise was that Inzamam didn’t select Sarfaraz Ahmed and Fakhar Zaman in his squad. He cited Zaman’s poor showing in the T20Is for his omission. And Inzamam only wants one wicket-keeper in the squad.Inzamam explained this saying,”Fakhar Zaman played well in the ODIs in South Africa, but his performance in T20Is hasn’t been impressive. It is logical that the team will not carry two wicket-keepers in the 15-men squad. So there isn’t much debate if you ask me. It will be Rizwan.”
The opening combination of Babar Azam Mohammad Rizwan has been very successful in limited-overs cricket. Inzamam-ul-Haq doesn’t want to change this duo for the World Cup.
Inzamam was impressed by what he saw of Masood in the Kashmir Premier League (KPL) and the Pakistan Super League (PSL). He added that Sharjeel would have been one of the best batters in T20 hadn’t for the ban. So,Inzi,as he is fondly called,has selected Shan Masood and Sharjeel Khan as the backup openers in the squad.He reasoned this selection of his saying,
“I have seen Shan Masood in KPL and PSL. I felt he played better than all other players. He hits sensibly, makes runs through proper shots, has a good strike rate, knows to take singles, has the sense of the game. Sharjeel Khan is a natural player. If the ban of 2-3 years hadn’t happened, he would have been one of the best T20 players in the world now.”
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