"Even Babar Azam is close with Hasan Ali" - Ahmed Shahzad questions pacer's selection in Pakistan T20I squad
Former T20 World Cup champion Ahmed Shahzad has questioned PCB's decision to recall Hasan Ali to the squad for the away series against Ireland and England.
During an appearance on Geo News, Ahmed Shahzad shared his views on Ali's return. Ali, who played his last T20I against Sri Lanka in September 2022, is all set to make a comeback to the shortest format of the game after being dropped for almost two years.
Ahmed Shahzad highlighted that the fast bowler had a good relationship with captain Babar Azam, chief selector Wahab Riaz and also assistant coach Azhar Mahmood.
"Hasan Ali was going to find his way back in the team because see Azhar Mahmood has come, he likes Hasan Ali a lot. They have a close relation. Wahab Riaz has had a close relationship with Hasan Ali. Even Babar Azam is close with Hasan Ali," Ahmed Shahzad pointed out.
Shahzad further clarified that he did not 100% believe that Ali was selected based on his friendships, but at the same time, he raised questions over the pacer's recent form.
"I am not saying that he has made it to the squad based on that only. However, I am not able to find any performances to justify his place in the team. Even Haris Rauf was injured. Just after recovering, he has been selected. How?," Shahzad continued.
"We can stop domestic cricket and just rotate those 35-40 players in Pakistan team" - Ahmad Shahzad thinks PCB only consider PSL stars for selection
During the same show, Shahzad mentioned that the PCB only gives priority to the PSL stars and ignores the players who toil in domestic cricket. He opined that PCB should stop domestic tournaments if they do not have any significance in team selection.
"If you want to do things based on PSL only, like Shadab is a PSL captain, then he should be there, someone is a Lahore Qalandars player, he should be there, someone is a Peshawar Zalmi player, so he should be there. Then, we can stop domestic cricket and just rotate those 35-40 players in Pakistan team," Shahzad concluded.
Pakistan will soon travel to Ireland for a three-match series against the hosts, starting May 10. It will be followed by a three-match series against England from May 22 to 30.