“We always thought that Umar deserved a place in the T20 squad”
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Umar Akmal has been drafted back into Pakistan’s Twenty20 squad for the three-match Twenty20 series against the West Indies in the United Arab Emirates later this month.
Akmal has not played international cricket since the World Twenty20 and was not selected for Pakistan’s recently concluded tour of England due to disciplinary reasons.
Pakistan head coach Waqar Younis told Akmal to re-earn his spot in the national team through domestic cricket and the 26-year-old obliged by striking a career-best 115 not out while representing Lahore in their National T20 Cup match against Rawalpindi last Monday.
It has also been reported that Akmal promised Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Shaharyar Khan that there would be no further issues regarding his discipline.
“We always thought that Umar deserved a place in the T20 squad and he indeed is in very good form,” Tauseef Ahmed, a member of Pakistan’s selection committee, told ESPNcricinfo. “We really don’t need to go back into past [and think about] why he was dropped. We got the required clearance from PCB before picking him. He is a good batsman and there is always a place for him in the squad.”
Meanwhile, batsman Mohammad Hafeez and left-arm seamer Mohammad Irfan have been left out due to injuries, while uncapped seamer Amad Butt was dropped.
With that being the case, left-arm fast bowler Rumman Raees and batsman Saad Nasim have been recalled to the side.
“We want to take a chance with a legspinner against West Indies,” Ahmed said about Nasim. “And observing him in the national circuit, I think he can give us some variety as he is also a solid batsman.
“Rumman on other hand is booming fast bowler and we want to keep him on line with the national squad. He had been outstanding at the domestic level and we want him to be in contention.”
Pakistan T20 squad: Sarfraz Ahmed (capt), Khalid Latif, Sharjeel Khan, Shoaib Malik, Mohammad Rizwan, Babar Azam, Mohammad Nawaz, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Amir, Wahab Riaz, Hasan Ali, Sohail Tanvir, Rumman Raees, Umar Akmal, Saad Nasim