‘I will only play if Babar Azam wants me to’, says Shoaib Malik on Pakistan T20 World Cup selection

By Charlie On Oct 5, 2022

Pakistan all-rounder Shoaib Malik expressed dissatisfaction at being left out of the national squad for the forthcoming T20 World Cup 2022 in Australia, and said that he will only play if skipper Babar Azam asks so.

In an interview with Cricket Pakistan on YouTube, Malik revealed that he does have the occasional with Babar.

“During the previous world cup, he asked me if I wanted to continue playing or retire, to which I said that I don’t want to play longer due to the current turn of events,” Malik explained.

“However, I informed Babar that I would play if he wanted me to.I have always been and continue to be accessible for Pakistan,” Malik remarked.

“I then asked Babar to tell me if I should take part in selected series or selected matches and communicate the same to me. He then told me ‘ok you can play and I’ll tell you accordingly’,” he further added.

Malik, who was not chosen for the T20 World Cup in 2022, last played for Pakistan in November 2021.

Former Pakistan all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez claims that a player of Shoaib Malik’s stature has been mistreated. Malik was passed over for the just finished Asia Cup 2022 as well as the World Cup. Despite publicly asserting that he can still play, the 40-year-old was unable to make the national squad.

Hafeez praised Malik for staying in shape and added that such treatment should not be meted out to someone who has played international cricket for over two decades.

“Malik gave his best to Pakistan for about 21-22 years and maintaining your fitness standards for that long is absolutely remarkable,” Hafeez was quoted as saying to Cricket Pakistan.

“When I took my retirement, I told Malik to take retirement as well because I knew that he will not be respected as it was also evident in my case. My understanding was that he wanted one last standing but cricket is cruel like this,” he said.

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