Umar Akmal Levels Serious Allegations Against Former Pakistan Head Coach Waqar Younis

Out of favour Pakistan middle-order batsman, Umar Akmal has lashed out at former Pakistan head coach Waqar Younis. It must be noted that Umar Akmal has been marred with controversies in the recent years. He has earlier alleged the current Pakistan coach Mickey Arthur of using abusive language against him.

Speaking on Waqar, Umar revealed that the former coach forced him to do wicket-keeping in Tests. Umar himself felt that wasn’t his cup of tea especially in the longest format. He further added that when he refused to keep in Tests, Waqar threatened to throw him out of the team. Umar has a pretty stoop start career so far. Despite promising in few matches, he has been largely inconsistent. It has led to his ouster from the national team on numerous occasions.

“Talking about Pakistan cricket team, I accept that I refused to perform wicket-keeping duties in Test matches, however, I did wicket-keeping in limited overs cricket for three [to] four years,” Akmal was quoted as saying by business recorder during the final of the Pakistan Cup yesterday night.

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“There our coach back then Waqar Younis told me to do wicket-keeping in Test matches, but I refused because we had a series ahead in Dubai, where Misbah ul Haq [the then skipper] used to play three spinners and one fast bowler,” Akmal added.

Akmal’s viewpoint

Akmal was of the viewpoint that wicket-keeping in those tough conditions would hamper his performances with the bat. He wasn’t a regular wicket-keeper from the start of his career. It made his life difficult to cope with the new responsibility, especially in Tests. However, Akmal conceded that his refusal didn’t go down well with Waqar.

“I remember his [Younis] words, ‘I will see who will allow you to play cricket in the future,’ to which I pleaded that I want to play for my country,” Akmal said.

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