Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, and Shaheen Afridi dragged by the collar by Ahmed Shehzad for this reason
Published - 04 Jul 2024, 12:23 PM | Updated - 04 Jul 2024, 12:31 PM
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Out-of-favor Pakistani batter Ahmed Shehzad criticized the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for allowing Pakistani players to join franchise leagues across the world. Ahmed Shehzad questioned the commitment of players following a poor showing in the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 in the West Indies and the USA.
The Babar Azam-led team suffered losses to the USA and India in their first two games in the ninth edition of the T20 World Cup. The Men in Green were eliminated from the tournament's group stage despite winning their next two games. It was Pakistan's first group-stage exit in the T20 World Cup since 2014.
The Pakistan Cricket Board granted permission to players to participate in global T20 leagues after another disappointing performance at an ICC tournament. The Pakistan Cricket Board issued no-objection certificates to 12 players, including centrally contracted players, to feature in franchise leagues.
PCB Has Allowed 12 Players - Ahmed Shehzad
Ahmed Shehzad criticized the PCB for permitting Pakistani players, including those who performed poorly in the recent World Cup, to feature in international T20 leagues. Shahzad, who hasn't played for Pakistan since 2019, stated that Pakistani players have no shame.
“PCB has allowed 12 players to play in leagues around the world after a very disappointing performance in the World Cup. These players have no shame; they did not perform for Pakistan, but now they will play league cricket as usual. Is it correct to do this by PCB?" Shehzad wrote on X.
پی سی بی نے ورلڈ کپ میں انتہائی مایوس کن کارکردگی کے بعد 12 کھلاڑیوں کو دنیا بھر کی لیگز میں کھیلنے کی اجازت دے دی ہے۔ ان کھلاڑیوں کو کوئی شرم نہیں، انہوں نے پاکستان کے لیے پرفارم نہیں کیا لیکن اب وہ ہمیشہ کی طرح لیگ کرکٹ کھیلیں گے۔ کیا پی سی بی کی طرف سے یہ کرنا درست ہے؟
— Ahmad Shahzad 🇵🇰 (@iamAhmadshahzad) July 3, 2024
کہاں…
The PCB postponed issuing NOCs to Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi, and Mohammad Rizwan for their participation in Canada's Global T20 tournament. It was reported that the NOCs have been delayed while the PCB seeks clarification from the ICC about the league's status.
Where Is The Big Surgery - Ahmed Shehzad
Ahmed Shehzad questioned the PCB chairman about why "big surgery" hadn't started and no action had been taken against underperforming players. The 32-year-old stated that players should be removed if they were involved in grouping within the team.
"Where is the big surgery that Chairman PCB promised? Why hasn’t the surgery started yet? According to the report submitted by the manager and head coach, why action has not been taken against the players yet? These players are less interested in playing for Pakistan and only care about league contracts," he added.
"We refused the contracts of various leagues to play domestic cricket in Pakistan but these players had no shame and asked for permission to play the leagues after a bad World Cup. Shameful act and PCB should ensure that players involved in grouping are removed from the team. These players should have apologized to the nation but they have no remorse and do not care about the feelings of the fans,” Shehzad concluded.
Earlier, Ahmed Shehzad also slammed Mohammad Rizwan for playing the religion card to deflect from his poor performance in the T20 World Cup. He reiterated the demand for the PCB Chairman to follow through on promises of reform.
Pakistan is set to play Bangladesh in a two-match Test series in August 2024 as part of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-2025 cycle. The upcoming Test series between Pakistan and Bangladesh will be played in Pakistan in August.
