Selectors pulled up for ignoring Ijaz

Karachi, Aug 8: A top Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) official pulled up the selectors after they said Ijaz Ahmad had not been picked in a short-list of 20 players for the Singapore tour.

Lt Gen Tauqir Zia, chairman of the PCB, according to sources, took it as a personal offence after the selectors ignored his recommendation for Ijaz.

The change in the attitude of the selectors was quite different on Tuesday when they retracted their earlier statement and said Ijaz was still under consideration.

The selectors said all the 43 probables attending the camp were being considered for selection.

In a significant move, the selectors also named Ijaz Ahmad in one of the two teams that will play two warm-up games against each other. The teams would comprise players attending the camp which nullifies their claims of finalizing a pool of 20 players.

The selectors further told newsmen that they would finalize the team on Saturday and will submit it to the PCB advisory panel for approval.

Meanwhile, former captain Saeed Anwar joined the camp on Tuesday but admitted that he has still not made up his mind about going to Singapore. He felt that at least one month's training was essential to regain top fitness. But added that he would inform the selectors about his availability in the next couple of days.

The selectors said Saeed and Moin Khan have been given options to judge their fitness levels and confirm if they can play in Singapore. "The two are senior pros and can be the best judges of their fitness," selectors said.

However, both the players were named captains of their respective teams for the practice matches to be played on Friday and Saturday.

Saeed Anwar XI: Saeed Anwar (captain), Imran Nazir, Yousuf Youhana, Hasan Raza, Naumanullah, Faisal Iqbal, Azhar Mahmood, Atiq-ur-Zaman, Arshad Khan, Mushtaq Ahmad, Waqar Younis and Mohammad Akram.

Moin Khan XI: Moin Khan (captain), Salim Elahi, Shahid Afridi, Ijaz Ahmad, Bazid Khan, Qaisar Abbas, Younis Khan, Javed Qadeer, Shoaib Malik, Shabbir Ahmad, Shafiq Ahmad, Sajid Shah and Mohammad Sami.