Former India opener Virender Sehwag has not been shy about expressing his views on Pakistan cricket in the wake of the disastrous T20 World Cup defeat and has accused current chief selector Wahab Riaz of bias which is hurting cricket in the country.
Riaz, a former Pakistan fast bowler, was appointed as the chairman of the selection committee by the Pakistan Cricket Board in November last year, which coincidentally coincided with the return of veteran fast bowler Mohammed Amir to the national team.
Amir, who once played alongside Riaz, was part of Pakistan’s squad that competed in the ongoing T20 World Cup, where they were eliminated in the group stage after losing to India and the United States.
As a result, the team came under a lot of criticism from Pakistanis and former cricketers, with Riaz and captain Babar Azam at the centre of criticism, in addition to questions about the team’s fitness and the selection of certain players.
Reacting to this on the CricBuzz show, Sehwag said, “Wahab Riaz and Mohammed Amir, these two criticised and commented on the Pakistan team on the same TV channel. Today, one of them is a selector (Riaz) and the other is a playing member (Amir).”
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“So if the same people who were criticising come to power today and become the selectors, what would they do first? ‘Mohammed Amir was with me, let me select him’. If Ajit Agarkar was the chairman (of the BCCI selection committee) today, he would say, ‘Vir, Zak (Zahir Khan) come out. I will support you in coming back,'” Sehwag added.
Sehwag did not mince words about the biased attitude of the Pakistan selectors, advising them to “not play favourites”.
“Now that you are a selector, you have to look to the future. You have a job to do. Use it properly and don’t give favours. The selectors have to take that tough step,” Sehwag said.
Riaz, a former Pakistan fast bowler, was appointed as the chairman of the selection committee by the Pakistan Cricket Board in November last year, which coincidentally coincided with the return of veteran fast bowler Mohammed Amir to the national team.
Amir, who once played alongside Riaz, was part of Pakistan’s squad that competed in the ongoing T20 World Cup, where they were eliminated in the group stage after losing to India and the United States.
As a result, the team came under a lot of criticism from Pakistanis and former cricketers, with Riaz and captain Babar Azam at the centre of criticism, in addition to questions about the team’s fitness and the selection of certain players.
Reacting to this on the CricBuzz show, Sehwag said, “Wahab Riaz and Mohammed Amir, these two criticised and commented on the Pakistan team on the same TV channel. Today, one of them is a selector (Riaz) and the other is a playing member (Amir).”
Watch the video
“So if the same people who were criticising come to power today and become the selectors, what would they do first? ‘Mohammed Amir was with me, let me select him’. If Ajit Agarkar was the chairman (of the BCCI selection committee) today, he would say, ‘Vir, Zak (Zahir Khan) come out. I will support you in coming back,'” Sehwag added.
Sehwag did not mince words about the biased attitude of the Pakistan selectors, advising them to “not play favourites”.
“Now that you are a selector, you have to look to the future. You have a job to do. Use it properly and don’t give favours. The selectors have to take that tough step,” Sehwag said.
