Umar Akmal was the No. 1 pick for Rajasthan Royals - Darren Berry, RR coach
An excerpt from the article in Dawn:
The report comes just as Darren Berry, former Australia first-class cricketer and a member of the Rajasthan Royals coaching staff, revealed that** teenage Pakistani batsman Umar Akmal was the Royals top pick for this season’s IPL auction** and was surprised at the omission. He wrote:
“After spending the past two weeks in India preparing for the Indian Premier League in March, I am staggered at the recent treatment of the Pakistan players. I agree with Shahid Afridi that he and his countrymen were humiliated in the IPL auction in Mumbai last week. …I do not have all the information - and possibly never will as this was a very delicate issue played out behind the scenes. However, I do know - due to my coaching role with the Rajasthan Royals - that a few weeks ago Umar Akmal was No. 1 priority on the Royals’ shopping list. All of a sudden he was not available. As the auction unfolded live on TV in India, it became evident that it wasn’t just Umar Akmal who was in the no-go zone, but all of the Pakistan players. The press in India asked plenty of questions but got few straight answers.”