Akmal no longer has a central contract

Image courtesy of: Zimbio

Pakistan batsman Umar Akmal has been omitted from the list of centrally contracted players for the 2017/18 season.

Akmal’s fitness is likely to have been the biggest factor in him not receiving a central contract as last month, he was axed from Pakistan’s Champions Trophy squad after failing two fitness tests in as many days.

In April, Akmal was dropped for Pakistan’s tour of the West Indies for the same reason as he was the only player, out of 31, that failed a fitness test at the National Cricket Academy in March.

A total of 35 central contracts were handed out, with a lot of new faces, such as Imam-ul-Haq, Asif Zakir and Bilal Asif, coming in since players like Misbah-ul-Haq and Younis Khan have retired.

“The central contracts were awarded after keeping in mind the performances, fitness, and discipline of the players,” the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said in a statement. “A number of young players have been awarded central contracts this year keeping in mind that the national teams in all formats will be going through a transitional period after a number of retirements from last year’s central contract list.”

List of Centrally Contracted Players

Category A: Azhar Ali, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Sarfraz Ahmed, Yasir Shah, Mohammad Amir• Category A: Azhar Ali, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Sarfraz Ahmed, Yasir Shah, Mohammad Amir

Category B: Babar Azam, Imad Wasim, Asad Shafiq, Hasan Ali

Category C: Wahab Riaz, Rahat Ali, Haris Sohail, Sami Aslam, Shan Masood, Sohail Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Junaid Khan, Ahmed Shahzad, Mohammad Abbas, Shahdab Khan

Category D: Mohammad Nawaz, Asif Zakir, Usman Salahuddin, Amir Yamin, Usman Shinwari, Faheem Ashraf, Ruman Raees, Imam-ul-Haq, Bilal Asif, Mir Hamza, Umer Amin, Mohammad Hasan, Mohammad Asghar, Mohammad Rizwan