Pakistan news – Ahmed Shehzad quits PSL in a huff, points to ‘coordinated effort’ to deny him a team

It does not signal a retirement from all cricket, with Shehzad claiming he had been offered money to participate in leagues around the world, offers which he should theoretically be able to take up now. His statement suggested disillusionment with Pakistan cricket, saying patriotism “goes against you”, and pointedly suggesting other players had taken up lucrative league contracts around the globe, while he opted to stay in the domestic circuit.

“I have tried really hard in domestic cricket consistently in the last few years, and did reasonably well in the National T20 Cup just before the PSL draft,” he wrote in a post on social media. “There seems a deliberate effort to keep me out, even when franchises have opted for other performers with inferior numbers than me,” he said. “But when everything is pre-planned it doesn’t really matter. I don’t know whose responsibility it is to get top domestic performers in the PSL then.”

Despite being out of Pakistan contention for a few years now, there has been something of a campaign this season – on social media if nowhere else – to have Shehzad selected for Pakistan again. Wahab Riaz, the chief selector, has been asked questions about a possible recall for Shehzad on a couple of occasions, as was incoming selector Asad Shafiq. Both have played down his chances though have not ruled out a return.