The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has delayed the announcement of the national squad for the tour of theWest Indies. The selection committee was supposed to make the announcement yesterday but has now delayed their announcement by a day.
According to details the announcement was deferred as the players were called in by Punjab Chief Minister, Shahbaz Sharif, for a ceremony in their honour after they succeeded in reaching the semi-finals of the recently concluded World Cup 2011, which was jointly hosted by India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Pakistan were ousted from the tournament by India in Mohali.
The minister has awarded Rs500,000 to every player of the national squad for their efforts in the mega event.
Earlier, the selection committee headed by Chief Selector, Mohsin Khan, met the PCB Chairman, Ijaz Butt, and, Pakistan skipper, Shahid Afridi, to discuss the selection of the team for the upcoming tour, which consists of a Twenty20, two Test matches and five One Day Internationals (ODIs).
Although the team has not been announced, it is rumoured that all-rounder, Abdul Razzaq, pacer, Umar Gul, and, middle-order batsman, Younis Khan, will be rested for the tour in order to give young players a chance to show their talents in the Caribbean.
Skipper Afridi has confirmed the omission of Umar Gul, as the pacer made himself unavailable for the tour.
According to reports, four young players may join the national squad. The players include wicket-keeper, Mohammad Salman, Tanvir Ahmed, Azhar Ali and Hammad Azam.
Meanwhile, Afridi reiterated that the PCB needed to appoint a full time batting coach for the national team. Favouring the appointment of Pakistan’s phenomenal former batsman, Javed Miandad, the Pakistan captain said, “Our biggest fear was our batting in the World Cup. So accepting there are batting problems we‘ve told Miandad that the country needs him”.
Pakistan’s batting form proved to be their Achilles heel as they failed to chase an achievable total of 260 runs against a mediocre Indian bowling attack in the ICC 2011 World Cup semi-final.
On the other hand, this is the first time since 1992, that the PCB has not fired the national coach and skipper along with senior players after a loss in the World Cup. In fact the Men in Green received a hero’s welcome on their return by fans and the cricket fraternity.
Earlier, Afridi stated that he would prefer missing the West Indies tour but later he agreed to lead the team.
Coach, Waqar Younis is not in favour of leaving out all the senior players. In an interview he suggested that the Pakistan team needs a balance of experience and youth to survive.
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