Atiq-uz-Zaman: “Mohammad Abbas’ career was ruined by Misbah and [company] in 2020. I asked in a meeting and was told, ‘it’s easy to take wickets in county cricket’. Personal disliking kept him out for years”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Former Pakistan cricketer Atiq-uz-Zaman has claimed that Misbah-ul-Haq ruined fast bowler Mohammad Abbas’ career when he was head coach of the national team.
Atiq claimed that “personal disliking” led to Abbas being overlooked for years, even though he was taking wickets consistently while playing county cricket in England.
The 36-year-old is now back in the Test side and dominating with the ball. During the Test series against the West Indies, he took eight wickets in the one match he played, which included a five-for, at an average of 10.62.
As for the three-Test series against England, Abbas finished with 13 wickets, which included a five-for, at an average of 25.38.
“Mohammad Abbas’ career was ruined by Misbah and [company] in 2020. I asked in a meeting and was told, ‘it’s easy to take wickets in county cricket’. Personal disliking kept him out for years. Now Abbas is back doing what he does best, taking wickets. Class is permanent,” Atiq said on X.
Abbas didn’t feature in Pakistan’s recent ODI tri-series against Sri Lanka and England, which they won.
He has, however, been picked for the ongoing two-Test series against Sri Lanka, which started on November 9 in Rawalpindi.
So far, Abbas has taken one wicket in the 1st Test.
Pakistan Squad for the Test series against Sri Lanka: Babar Azam (captain), Aamer Jamal, Ali Shabbir, Arafat Minhas, Azan Awais, Mohammad Abbas, Ghazi Ghori (wicketkeeper), Mohammad Suleman, Mohammad Taha, Tayyab Arif, Razaullah, Saad Baig (wicketkeeper), Salman Ali Agha, Sameer Minhas, Saqib Khan and Saud Shakeel