“I will have no regrets if I don’t play for Pakistan anymore”: Shoaib Malik

Pakistan reliable middle-order batsman Shoaib Malik debut for his national side in 1999 and since then he played several instrumental innings for his national side.

But after 2019 World Cup he has been in and out of the team and with the way Pakistan’s middle order has failed constantly in the last 6 months and the reports have started surfacing that Malik can make comeback in the national squad.

He was asked recently about his comeback to the national side to which the ace player said I will have no regrets even if I don’t play for Pakistan anymore.

He went on to accuse Pakistan Cricket for Nepotism and selecting players based on favoritism not on merit. The star all-rounder even said that Pakistan cricket can only go forward if players are selected based on merit and not via links.

Malik who only plays T20 cricket for his national side and retired from Test and ODI cricket in 2019 and was also a member of the winning team that lifted Champions Trophy title in 2017.

However, the veteran cricketer said he’s ready to put his career at risk rather than being quiet on the matter.

“Whatever is in my fate is in the hands of the Almighty and not in any person’s control. I will have no regrets if I am not asked to play again, but I would have felt more regret if I had not spoken up on behalf of my fellow cricketers,” Malik asserted.

“We have a system of liking and disliking in our cricket, which is something that is present in the rest of the world as well, but seems to be a bit more in our culture. The day things change in our cricket system where more importance is given to skills rather than who a person knows, only then will things improve,” he was quoted as saying by Pakistani journalist Saj Sadiq.

“In the recent squad there were many players who Babar wanted to pick, but they weren’t selected. Everyone has their opinions but the final decision on selection should be that of the captain because it’s he who will fight it out on the ground he with his team”, the 39-year-old opined.