Pakistan have lost more than three and a half talented players in last 10 years: Harsha Bhogle

Harsha Bhogle, the popular cricket journalist, said that Pakistan has lost more than three and a half highly talented players in the last 10 years or so. The veteran recently spoke on former Pakistan batsman Ramiz Raja’s official Youtube channel. During the interaction, he named Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Asif, Ahmed Shehzad and Umar Akmal as the ones who couldn’t justify their talent.

Amir and Asif’s career were threatened big time after the 2010 Lord’s spot-fixing scandal. Though the former managed to make a mark after comeback, Asif’s career literally came to a close. Amir, last year, retired from Test cricket in order to prolong his ODI and T20I career for the Pakistan team.

Akmal was deemed to be a special prospect when he forayed into international cricket. But in the last four years, he got himself tangled into all sort of controversies. Recently, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) handed him a three-year ban after he breached the board’s Anti-Corruption Code.

Shehzad, on the other hand, was another talented young gun. But despite showing loads of promise, he couldn’t substantiate his potential enough. In 2018, he was also banned by the PCB for doping charges. Though he has made brief comebacks, he has never been able to be a reliable figure.

Harsha Bhogle opines

“Pakistan have lost more than three and a half talented players in last 10 years. First would be Mohammad Asif, who many batsmen still rate as the best they faced. I would still say Pakistan has lost Mohammad Amir, although he has bowled well at times. Third would Umar Akmal and more than half would be Ahmed Shehzad,” Bhogle was quoted as saying in the video.

Bhogle was also surprised that the entire fifth edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) would take place in Pakistan. Speaking on the same, the veteran said, “To be honest, I did not think that PSL would take place in Pakistan but it did and that is a huge thing.”

The first season of the PSL in 2016 was played in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). But from 2017 onwards, the tournament started making its way to Pakistan. However, the previous edition could only be played until the league stage as the coronavirus pandemic played spoilsport.