Ahmed Shehzad: “Tayyab Tahir was brought in, he wasn’t welcome and was excluded”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Ahmed Shehzad has claimed that Pakistan middle order batsman Tayyab Tahir “wasn’t welcome” when he was called up to the national team and was even “excluded.”
Tahir made his international debut during Pakistan’s three-match T20I series against Afghanistan in March 2023 and scored 39 runs at an average of 13.
Shehzad, who is a top order batsman, noted that not all players are “given the same level of treatment” when they come into the Pakistan team, which he feels is unacceptable.
“I’ve talked to some players. Few players are not welcome in the dressing room. They aren’t given the same level of treatment and confidence as some others. They try to keep certain players in the team and drop the others. Tayyab Tahir was brought in, he wasn’t welcome and was excluded,” he was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.
Pakistan recently played in the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup and started off by beating the Netherlands and Sri Lanka before faltering against India, Australia, Afghanistan and South Africa.
Despite ending their four-game skid with back-to-back victories over Bangladesh and New Zealand, it wasn’t enough to earn them a spot in the semi-finals.
The men in green ended their campaign on a low as England thumped them by 93 runs.
Pakistan’s next assignment will be a three-match Test series against Australia, which will get underway on December 14 in Perth.
Pakistan Squad for Australia Test Series: Shan Masood (captain), Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Noman Ali, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Saud Shakeel and Shaheen Shah Afridi
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