Inzamam names Sharjeel Khan, Kamran Akmal in all-time Pakistan WC squad

Monitoring Desk

KARACHI: Pakistan’s Chief Selector Inzamamul Haq has selected banned opener Sharjeel Khan and discarded wicketkeeper-batsman Kamran Akmal in his 13-member all-time Pakistan squad.

While selecting an all-time Pakistan World Cup XI for Cricket Pakistan, Inzamam lamented the fact that Sharjeel was not able to play longer for Pakistan.

“I would pick Sharjeel along with openers Saeed Anwar and Majid Khan. Sharjeel is an outstanding talents and it’s a shame that his career has been cut-short,” said Inzamam.

Inzamam termed selecting an all-time Pakistan World Cup XI a difficult task, due to the abundance of talented players that have played for Pakistan.

The 49-year-old didn’t include himself in the middle-order despite having a prolific record in one-day internationals (ODIs).

“If you look at the performance in ODIs, I can also include my name in the squad,” he said. “But I would select Zaheer Abbas, Javed Miandad and Mohammad Yousuf as my middle-order batsmen.”

Inzamam picked the former captain Imran Khan to lead the side and partner pacers Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis and Shoaib Akhtar in the bowling attack.

“Imran Khan is an obvious choice as the captain. He will form a potent pace attack with Wasim, Waqar and Shoaib,” he said. Inzamam also preferred all-rounder Shahid Afridi and former off-spinner Saqlain Mushtaq ahead of former leg-spinner Abdul Qadir.

“Abdul Qadir is a big name who has served Pakistan cricket a lot. However, when it comes to ODI cricket, I would go with Saqlain and Afridi as my spinners,” he said.

Pakistan’s chief selector made another controversial pick when he selected discarded wicketkeeper-batsman Kamran Akmal in his team.

“Although Pakistan have had some great wicketkeepers in the past like Wasim Bari, Rashid Latif and Moin Khan, but if you look at wicketkeepers in the modern era, Kamran Akmal would be the perfect choice,” he said. “Apart from being a wicketkeeper, Kamran is an excellent batsman who can bat at any position.”