‘No regrets if I am not asked to play again’ – Shoaib Malik accuses Pakistan Cricket Board of nepotism

Pakistan cricket and controversies indeed go hand in hand. While there have been numerous infamous episodes in Pakistan cricket, their selection policy has been mainly under the scanner in recent times. The likes of Mohammad Amir, Junaid Khan, and Wahab Riaz have alleged favouritism, biasedness, unfairness and many such things in the national selection. Now, veteran all-rounder Shoaib Malik has backed their claim with strong words.

Malik accused the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) of nepotism. The 2017-Champions Trophy winner claimed that selections are made in the team on the basis of connection rather than performance. The star all-rounder even said that Pakistan cricket can only go forward if players are selected based on merit and not via links.

Malik, who retired from ODI cricket after the 2019 World Cup and Tests much earlier, himself has been out of the national side of late. He last played for Pakistan in the T20 series in England last September. However, the veteran cricketer said he’s ready to put his career at risk rather than being quiet on the matter.

“Whatever is in my fate is in the hands of the Almighty and not in any person’s control. I will have no regrets if I am not asked to play again, but I would have felt more regret if I had not spoken up on behalf of my fellow cricketers,” Malik asserted.

We have a system of liking and disliking in our cricket: Shoaib Malik

“We have a system of liking and disliking in our cricket, which is something that is present in the rest of the world as well, but seems to be a bit more in our culture. The day things change in our cricket system where more importance is given to skills rather than who a person knows, only then will things improve,” he was quoted as saying by Pakistani journalist Saj Sadiq.

Notably, Pakistan skipper Babar also had a fallout with the selectors after a few of his recommended players weren’t picked for the Zimbabwe series. Highlighting this, Malik claimed that the captain should have command over the selection, and his decision should be the final.

“In the recent squad there were many players who Babar wanted to pick, but they weren’t selected. Everyone has their opinions but the final decision on selection should be that of the captain because it’s he who will fight it out on the ground he with his team”, the 39-year-old opined.