Misbah-ul-Haq: “All these players are in consideration and when the World Cup comes, we’ll see who is in our best 15. They can be senior or junior”
Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo
Pakistan head coach and chief selector Misbah-ul-Haq has not ruled out the possibility of picking the veteran trio of Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik and Wahab Riaz for the T20 World Cup.
The tournament was supposed to be held this year, but was postponed until October 2021 due to the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Misbah’s comments come after Hafeez, Malik and Wahab featured in the three-match T20 series against England.
Hafeez finished as the top run-scorer from both teams with 155 runs, which included two half-centuries, at an average of 155 and a strike-rate of 176.13.
Malik only batted once in the three games he played, and scored 14 runs.
As for Wahab, he only took part in the third T20 International and played a key role in leading Pakistan to a five-run win as he finished with figures of 2-26 off his four runs. He dismissed Sam Billings for 26 and Moeen Ali for 61.
Misbah noted that if the trio continue performing well going forward, then there is a chance they will be selected for the T20 World Cup.
“Seniors can continue with the team. Wahab and Hafeez performed here and if we look at the last couple of years in terms of average and strike-rate, Shoaib Malik has done very well as well according to the demands of modern day cricket,” Misbah was quoted as saying by PakPassion.
“We have to find the right balance. All these players are in consideration and when the World Cup comes, we’ll see who is in our best 15. They can be senior or junior. We want to try different combinations right now and see what happens.
“I think it’s wrong to write off players saying he’s 37, 38, he won’t play there, etc., it’s not fair on the player and the team. We will try these players and we’ll get a good picture before the World Cup about the best combination.”
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