Former Pakistan captain Asif Iqbal lauds axing of Kamran Akmal from the national team
Former Pakistan captain Asif Iqbal has hailed the ouster of wicketkeeper batsman Kamran Akmal from the Pakistan squad for the tour of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/West-Indies-c760.
Iqbal who captained Pakistan in the 1975 World Cup said, “Kamran Akmal deserved to be dropped. He had been tested more than once and hence does not deserve to be given another chance.”
Akmal’s ouster from the team has been welcomed by many in Pakistan as he performed miserably during the recently concluded ICC World Cup 2011 where he dropped crucial catches and missed stumpings that cost Pakistan dearly.
On Wednesday, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Mohsin-c77587 Khan, the players have been rested
for the series.
Gul had already requested the selection committee not to consider him for the upcoming series as he wanted to spend time with family after a hectic World Cup campaign that came to an end when Pakistan were defeated in the semi-final by archrivals http://www.senore.com/Cricket/India-c750 in
Mohali.
Speaking on the induction of new wicketkeeper in place of Akmal, Iqbal said, “It is good to try out a new wicketkeeper. I haven't seen much of Salman but heard a lot about another young wicket keeper in http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sarfraz-c88817 Ahmad, who also deserved to be considered.”
An uncapped 29-year-old wicketkeeper Mohammad http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Salman-c88163 has been named as a replacement for Akmal. The ouster of Akmal from the national team was in offing well before the ICC World Cup 2011 as he was struggling behind the stumps for almost a year. He had a
disastrous tour of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Australia-c746 where he had to be replaced by Sarfraz Ahmed in the second Test following his dismal performance in the first match.
He was then scrapped from the playing eleven because of alleged links with bookmakers. An integrity committee formed by the Pakistan Cricket Board was assigned a task to look into the earnings of suspected players which included Akmal. The PCB made it clear
that players would only be considered for selection if the integrity committee cleared them.
During this time, Zulqarnain Haider was selected for the role of Pakistan’s wicketkeeper. However, his time in the national team came to an abrupt end when he ditched the national team playing against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/United-Arab-Emirates-c3033 and fled to
the United Kingdom without informing the team management.
It was later revealed that he had received life threats from an alleged bookie who wanted him to lose the fourth and fifth One Day Internationals against South Africa.
After Zulqarnain’s departure, Akmal again saw an opportunity for his comeback in the national team. However, it was not made possible until he submitted all of his financial details.
After a thorough review of his assets, he was cleared of any wrongdoings by the integrity committee which resulted in his selection for the tour of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/New-Zealand-c754.
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