‘Little bit of bamboo’: Arthur reveals reason behind Imam’s exclusion

Mickey Arthur, the team director of the Pakistan men's side, has shed light on the reason behind Imam ul Haq's exclusion in the last two ODIs against New Zealand in the recently-concluded five-match ODI series.

Arthur clarified that Imam's exclusion was not due to any disciplinary issues or lack of form, but solely due to his injury concerns.

"There was nothing sinister about Imam-ul-Haq sitting out for last two ODIs against New Zealand. He had a slight injury during fourth ODI and we weren’t sure if he would be fine till the fifth ODI," Arthur said while talking to a foreign media outlet.

Moreover, Arthur mentioned that he had a conversation with Imam regarding his comments in the media regarding team selection.

"About his comments in media regarding team selection, I have had a conversation with him. Imam and I have a great relationship. He is a wonderful guy and I love him. Let’s just say there was a lot of love in that conversation and little bit of bamboo as well," he added.

After the third ODI in the post-match press conference, Imam made headlines as he said that the Men in Green doesn’t have many matches left to experiment with their playing XI ahead of the 2023 World Cup. Hence, he shunned the idea of including power-hitters like Iftikhar Ahmed and Mohammad Haris in the lower-middle order.

However, in the fourth ODI, Imam was himself dropped and Iftikhar and Haris got an opportunity to play in the same game. He was also benched for the last ODI of the series.