PCB Baffled At Naseem Shah's Age Controversy, Slams India

Pakistan’s latest bowling sensation Naseem Shah recently found his name doing the rounds for all the wrong reasons. The youngster, who was being hailed not very long ago for making his debut at an age of of 16, has found himself in the middle of a controversy related to his age with many thinking that he is much older.

Questions are being raised on his age as many think that he is not 16 but is much older. Fans are coming up with old articles and data to back their claims. A piece published in Pakistan’s Dawn quotes West Indian fast bowling great Andy Roberts speaking about Naseem, “I must say that I very much liked a young fast bowler by the name of Naseem. He is just a 16-year-old.”

While Roberts was spot on with his assessment, the only problem was that he said the same way back in 2016 when Naseem Shah should have been 13 as per the papers. There are also tweets and YouTube videos in which, as a part of Quetta Gladiators squad, Shah is mentioned as a 17-year-old. No surprises then that many are questioning the pacer’s age.

PCB surprised:

Expressing its surprise, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), meanwhile, has come down hard on those who are questioning Shah’s age. PCB’s Chief Executive Wasim Khan rubbished claims about the young pacer forging his age. He also insisted that most of the critics who are questioning Shah’s age are from India as he said PCB do not ‘really care what India think’.

“You only need to look at his face,” Khan told The Tonk according to Nine Network Australia. “He’s hardly got any growth on his face. In terms of that, people question it no doubt, just because of his age and the fact that he’s a mature lad and the fact that he’s playing international cricket at this age.”

“But the bottom line is he’s 16 years old and he’s playing. We don’t really care what India think,” he added.

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