Controversial Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar, known more for his flashy mannerisms, is Mr. Unpopular in the team.
According to media reports, skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq and a few others have asked the Pakistan Cricket Board to exclude Akhtar from the squad for the India tour.
The media reports have named Inzamam, Yousuf Youhana, Abdul Razzaq, Shahid Afridi, Younis Khan, Rana Naved-ul Hassan and Salman Butt as players who are against Akhtar and these men are insisting that Akhtar should not be on the plane to India with them.
The players have even threatened to boycott the Australian tour and the series against India if Shoaib was included, a Pakistani newspaper has claimed.
Shoaib was called back to Pakistan by the PCB midway through the Australian tour. However, the PCB is downplaying the whole thing. Media director Abbas Zaidi was quoted by a Pakistani newspaper as saying, “There is no such thing and they are all playing for the country, doing their job as one unit.”
Although this is an Indian Web Site’s report without naming the Correspondent but even if this is a true report, i guess a wrong step towards right direction
Re: We Won’t Tour India If Shoaib Is There: Teammates
Screw Indian media and their biased reporting. It might take a lifetime for Pakistan
To believe in their so called friendship matches and bilateral ties.
^ This is an amusing piece, but just might do the damage in the Pak camp.
Re: We Won't Tour India If Shoaib Is There: Teammates
for the benefit of the team, the guys should put their personal problems behind them {if any} as with shabi in the side chances of wickets automatically increase compared to the new blood
Re: We Won't Tour India If Shoaib Is There: Teammates
The moment he left the side, its all new figthing unit. Look how Rana and Rao are bowling, they are giving their best and just today they have restricted World Champions to 237, never mind lost but sence of comitment is there.
Its the discipline which matters alot and when he is there u can not think of any such thing.
Good if he is not there or is kept away from the side
Re: We Won’t Tour India If Shoaib Is There: Teammates
^ I don’t think so .. it’s very obvious from the team’s display that they are playing as a team and shoaib’s absence is one of the primary reason as he was never part of it .. you go guyz :k:
Re: We Won't Tour India If Shoaib Is There: Teammates
I don't believe in this story. Inzi and Woolmar, yes they have all the reasons to keep this parasite out of the team and they have RIGHTS too. This moronic super star TCS should be stopped right here so no other player will have courage to keep the Board on its toes all the time.
The youngsters have to work hard to cement their positions in the team, they cannot brab about Actor's attitude at this stage. The team management's report, the pictures of him breaching the decipline and his latest ridiculous interviews, alone are enough to kick his rear end.
Re: We Won't Tour India If Shoaib Is There: Teammates
*If these statements are indeed true, then where the hell did Salman Butt get the nerve to run his mouth? I think Inzamam has a personal vendetta against Shoaib, and that will grow more obvious during the next few months. *
Pakistan's tumultuous cricketing year appeared set for another crisis with several leading players reportedly asking for Shoaib Akhtar to be omitted from the squad to tour India. The Nation reported that Inzamam-ul-Haq, Yousuf Youhana, Abdul Razzaq, Shahid Afridi, Younis Khan, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan and Salman Butt are among those supposed to have objected to Shoaib's continued presence in the line-up. The newspaper went as far as to suggest that the players would boycott the tour if Shoaib was a part of it.
Sections of the Pakistani media claimed that the players were convinced that the team could do well without him, having reached the VB Series final despite Shoaib having flown back home with a hamstring injury. The Pakistan Cricket Board had asked him to prove his fitness ahead of the Indian tour, and though sources within the PCB strenuously denied talk of anti-Shoaib sentiment, the media continue to question why he was recalled despite excellent medical facilities being available in Australia.
The same report quoted Abbas Zaidi, the PCB's media director, as saying: "There is no such thing and they are all playing for the country, doing their job as one unit." And when pressed further, Zaidi would only echo the statement made by Shaharyar Khan, the PCB chief, saying that Shoaib would only be named in the squad if he was fully fit.
Since Shoaib's return, Pakistan stormed into the final of the VB Series with two splendid victories in Perth, and then pushed Australia hard in the first final. Rana Naved, who carried on playing despite the death of his father back home, was singled out for special praise, with his attitude and dedication gaining many admirers.
The much-maligned Shoaib was Pakistan's stand-out performer in the 491-run debacle that was the Perth Test, and he also bowled magnificently in the first innings at Melbourne before injury reduced his efficacy. Unfortunately for him, extensive media coverage of his off the field antics appear to have prejudiced both his team-mates and the country against him.
Re: We Won't Tour India If Shoaib Is There: Teammates
The Game-- I agree that Inzi might have something against Shoaib but Shoaib doesnt do himself any justice. How in the world he is supposed to have friends in the team when he says that 'Its 7 aussie batsmen versus me' and stuff like that. He is undermining efforts of Danish Kaneria and others hardworking players. I am a big supporter of Shoaib and would lvoe to see him back for the indian tour but he needs to understand that Team is not because of him, he is because of the team.
Re: We Won't Tour India If Shoaib Is There: Teammates
it's the ewing theory, teams play better without their big name stars, i have no confidence in shoaib akhtar and his trip to india would turn into a facade, he just wants fame and doesn't care for the team. his time has come and gone.
