Wasim Akram To Miss International Events (4 Feb 1997)

4 February 1997

Akram decides to skip international events

By Samiul Hasan

KARACHI, Feb 3: The tough off-season commitments of the Pakistan cricket team made skipper Wasim Akram its first scalp when the allrounder pulled out from at least three international tournaments.

The PIA and Lancashire allrounder has made himself available for Pakistan only till April and will thus appear in the Sharjah Cup and two Tests against Sri Lanka.

With the English County Championships starting in the third week of April, Wasim Akram will proceed to the North of England from Sri Lanka and will miss May`s Singer Cup in Singapore, Sahara Cup in Canada and Asia Cup in Sri Lanka (both in August).

According to well informed sources, Pakistan`s tour to India for three one-day internationals in May have fallen in jeopardy.

"The PCB had inquired me of my commitments and though I have not informed them officially, I have made up my mind that I will only play for Pakistan till April before rejoining the team in September," Wasim Akram told this correspondent on Monday.

Pakistan will be hosting three major events between September and December. Pakistan will be organising a quadrangular tournament at Lahore to be competed by Sri Lanka, South Africa and the West Indies. Pakistan also hold a separate three-Test series each with South Africa and the West Indies.

While Wasim Akram has decided about his priorities, Waqar Younis and Mushtaq Ahmad are also likely to follow in the footsteps of their skipper. Waqar has signed a lucrative two-year contract with Glamorgan while Mushtaq has a three-year commitment with Somerset.

Source :: Dawn (https://xiber.com/dawn)