“This is 100 percent wrong” - Fakhar Zaman opens up about controversial tweet on Babar Azam
Veteran Pakistan opener Fakhar Zaman has clarified his controversial post about Babar Azam's exclusion from the last two Tests against England earlier this year. The left-hander asserted that he did not criticise the board's decision but former players and fans as they wanted Babar dropped despite his accolades.
With the selectors dropping an out-of-form Babar to accommodate Kamran Ghulam for the last two England Tests, Zaman posted how India stood by Virat Kohli even when he struggled. The veteran opined that dropping arguably Pakistan's best batter over the years sends a negative message.
Here's the Zaman tweet that attracted criticism:
During a recent interaction, Zaman pointed out that he made the post on X before the squad was announced. He stressed that his response was down to the social media criticism of Babar. He said, as quoted by India Today:
"I thought about it later and felt that I should not have tweeted. But people got the tweet completely wrong. They thought that I was criticising the decision of the board, but this is 100 per cent wrong. If you see the timing of the tweet, it was done before the board made its decision. I saw in the news for 2-3 days that journalists and former players were criticising him (Babar Azam). And I thought to myself, Babar has done so much for the team, but they still wanted him to be dropped."
The 34-year-old's tweet got him in trouble, as the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) sent him a show-cause notice. Board chairman Mohsin Naqvi said the tweet was one of the main reasons he wasn't considered ahead of the limited-overs tour of Australia.
"I understand that no one is bigger than the board" - Fakhar Zaman
The opening batter suggested he regretted making the post, and urged youngsters not to criticise the board's selection calls, at least during their playing days. He added:
"I saw that and tweeted my opinion out. But I understand that no one is bigger than the board. I will even tell my junior cricketers that however big you become, you are not bigger than the board and you should not be criticising them during your playing days. But ya, my clarification is that I made my tweet before the team was announced."
Pakistan are currently in South Africa, with the Test series scheduled to begin on December 26 after the T20I and ODI leg.