Ramiz Raja: “He is not a bowler who should be dropped because a leg-spinner gives you [an] attacking option”

Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo

Former Pakistan captain Ramiz Raja firmly believes that the national team made a huge mistake in dropping spinner Shadab Khan for their World Cup clash against Australia on Wednesday.

Ramiz feels that since the Pakistan team saw that the pitch in Taunton was green, they decided an extra pace bowler would give them an advantage.

However, Ramiz pointed out that Shadab is an integral part of the team and has the ability to take wickets at crucial times.

“According to me, Pakistan selected the wrong team because they saw greenery on the pitch and overcast conditions and dropped Shadab Khan. He is not a bowler who should be dropped because a leg-spinner gives you [an] attacking option,” Ramiz was quoted as saying by the Business Recorder.

“Whereas Shaheen Shah Afridi, despite being a talented bloke, is rusty and he would not have much confidence after a mediocre performance in the last game. Pakistan does not need to make changes [to] its trump cards…. So it has been a very poor selection from their part.”

Pakistan lost their match against Australia by 41 runs and will look to bounce back against arch-rivals India in Manchester on Sunday.

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