Question marks surround selection of squads for National T20 Cup

Question marks have been raised with regards to the quality of the selection of the squads for the upcoming National Twenty20 (T20) Cup.

Many rising cricketers have been discarded in favour of the old brigade of players that have failed to make their mark on the international stage.

Many deserving players have been thrown into the second XI squads. The National T20 Cup is set to begin on September 30 in Multan. The first and second XIs of the sides were announced on Wednesday.

Sami Aslam, who has scored 802 runs with five fifties at an average of 28, was included in the second XI squad of Balochistan. Astonishingly, former Pakistan batsman Imran Farhat, who made his debut in 2001 against New Zealand, has been added to the first XI.

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Azeem Ghumman, who was included in the top five of the second XI for Balochistan in the previous season, was not added in any squads.

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) selectors, who had claimed that the players would be selected keeping in mind the upcoming World Cup, have selected many old players including Test specialist Asad Shafiq for the Sindh squad.

Fawad Alam has been downgraded to the second XI while being made captain of the side. Rising star Amir Khan was included in the second XI of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa side.

Similarly, Dilbur Hussain and Salman Irshad, who were being touted as future stars at one stage, were included in second XI squads of the Punjab and Northern sides respectively.