'IPL XI of the decade' - Latif takes dig at ICC after no Pakistan player makes T20I team
Rashid Latif has fired a shot at the ICC on Twitter, saying the global cricket governing body picked an 'IPL XI of the Decade' instead of a World T20I XI. Latif said so because there was not a single Pakistan player in the team the ICC named.
Latif is a former Pakistani wicket-keeper batsman. He represented the Pakistan cricket team in 37 Test matches and 166 ODIs. After retiring from professional cricket, the 52-year-old has regularly given his views on the sport via social media platforms.
The IPL is the world's top T20 cricket league right now. However, the BCCI does not allow players from Pakistan in the competition. Since the ICC's T20I XI of the Decade did not feature a Pakistan cricketer, Rashid Latif commented they made a 'typo error'.
"TYPO Error {They forget to write IPL-T20s team for the decade}," tweeted Rashid Latif.
It is pertinent to note Babar Azam is at the second position on the ICC T20I Rankings for batsmen. The Pakistan cricket team also held the number one rank on the T20I Team Rankings for a considerable time. Thus, multiple Pakistan cricketers, including Rashid Latif, were disappointed with the ICC's lineup.
Pakistan cricket team stars have been away from the IPL since the first season
11 Pakistani cricketers played the first IPL season. Two players - Younis Khan and Kamran Akmal - won the championship with the Rajasthan Royals. However, BCCI barred the neighboring nation's players from participating in the competition because of the political tensions between the two countries.
Former Pakistan all-rounder Azhar Mahmood has played for the Kings XI Punjab and the Kolkata Knight Riders under a British passport in the last decade. But apart from Mahmood, no other Pakistani player has received an IPL contract. As far as the IPL is concerned, the 14th edition of the tournament will happen next year.