ISLAMABAD - Islamabad Regional Cricket Association (ICA) senior vice president Syed Abrar Hussain Rizvi has said that due to lack of communication, Islamabad cricketing talent is being deprived of representing the national team.
Talking to The Nation, Abrar said: “I spent more than four decades in Islamabad and Rawalpindi cricket and know each and every detail about the inside facts and the main reason why are the players of twin-cities being ignored at national level.”
He said the Islamabad Region had a long history, how it was separated from Rawalpindi region, just to give due rights to Islamabad players. “We faced a lot of hardships as we hadn’t sufficient funds, so we had to take ABL players to get funds. We also hadn’t playing grounds at that time, but thanks to Majid Khan, who played active role in helping Islamabad players to get due recognition.”
When asked about why Islamabad and Rawalpindi players don’t get their due right of representing national team, despite most powerful person Shakil Shaikh is sitting in Islamabad and has great influence in the Pakistan Cricket Board, Abrar said: “Actually, there is not much rocket science behind ignoring the local talent. Actually, the case of players is not pleaded in a way, it should be. We still have some great talented players including Ali Imran, M Irfan, Shoaib Khaliq, Salman Haider and others. I can assure if they are provided due chance, they can help the country win crucial matches against best teams of the world.”
He said the first Class cricket matches started regularly at Islamabad grounds, which was rarely witnessed in the past. “Shakil Shaikh and we along with a few others worked very hard. After our selection, we worked as a team and produced a number of quality players including Azhar Mehmood, Raheel Majeed, Junaid Nadir and others. I still believe that due to lack of communication, our players are being deprived of representing the national team.”
He said there is an urgent need of holding regular meetings with regional president and stakeholders to ensure discussions and close the communication gap, which will help in working better way. “The local players must be given more chances in first class and national one-day cups, but relegation factor is main reason behind the inclusion of guest players, which needs to be improved,” he added.