Angry Kamran Akmal tells Babar to keep his personal agendas aside
Veteran cricketer of the Pakistan cricket team, Kamran Akmal, is not happy with the way his brother, Umar Akmal, has been treated by the Pakistan cricket board. Unhappy to see his brother being "unfairly" snubbed, Akmal lashed out at the captain of the Pakistan cricket team, Babar Azam, suggesting he should put his personal agenda to one side and put the national team first. Akmal also accused Baba of giving his preferences top priority when it comes to national selection, as Umar was overlooked for the ODI team.
Kamran said, as per cricket Pakistan, "keep your personal agendas aside; drafting a team should be about putting Pakistan first, not personal agendas or preferences." It's concerning to see players being shifted between formats based on connections rather than performance. "We can't afford to treat team selection like a game of musical chairs."
He believes that players in the ODI team shouldn’t be snubbed on the basis of their performance in the T20.
He further said, "The team selection should not be based on transitioning players between formats solely on the basis of their connections on the board." It's not right to include someone in the ODI lineup just because they didn't perform well in T20I. "This seems like a game of musical chairs, and it's not fair to the team or the players."
Speaking for his brother, Kamran said that Umar deserves to play, and this will happen only when the people at higher levels change, while urging Babar to look into this matter.
Concluding his statement, he said that "the team captain should also think about this, not only the selection committee." He's been with the team for the last four to five years; he should look for the ground requirements of the team.