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Former wicketkeeper-batsman Kamran Akmal has revealed his Pakistan squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2021. The global showpiece event is scheduled to take place in Oman and United Arab Emirates (UAE) from October 18 to November 14.
Akmal picked a 15-member squad for the upcoming competition featuring Mohammad Rizwan and Sharjeel Khan as openers.
“Mohammad Rizwan has been performing really well as an opener. He has been in great form. Rizwan can play the aggressor in the powerplay, and then he also rotates strike in the middle-overs. Alongside him, Sharjeel Khan, who is a fearless batter. He believes in himself and can play aggressively and can utilize the fielding restrictions,” said Akmal on his YouTube channel.
For the middle-order, Akmal went with Pakistan captain Babar Azam and senior lads Mohammad Hafeez and Shoaib Malik. The 39-year-old further picked Fakhar Zaman, Azam Khan and Haider Ali in the outfit.
“Babar Azam has been carrying the batting lineup of Pakistan for quite some time now. He is a world-class player. He should be at No.3; while Mohammad Hafeez is another experienced player, he can finish the game and does the job with the ball too. Pakistan’s middle-order is poor, and Shoaib Malik needs to be in there. Azam Khan needs to be given a longer run,” the Lahore-born added.
Among the bowlers, Akmal named Shaheen Afridi, Hasan Ali and Haris Rauf, and expected them to take early wickets. However, Akmal mentioned that spinners would leave more impact in the Gulf nation, and Shadab Khan will be Pakistan’s key players along with Faheem Ashraf and Imad Wasim.
“Spinners will dominate in the UAE, so Shadab Khan would be a key player. He needs to be in form for Pakistan. Faheem Ashraf has also performed recently, and I think he would be given a chance. Imad Wasim is another good player who has done well in the shorter format. Bowlers like Hasan Ali, Shaheen Afridi and Haris Rauf would be required to get early breakthroughs,” concluded Akmal.
Here is Kamran Akmal’s Pakistan T20 World Cup squad:
Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Sharjeel Khan, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Azam Khan, Shadab Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, Asif Ali, Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Imad Wasim.
