No fitness, no party: New selectors to monitor training themselves

More signs Inzamam and company are serious about players’ fitness

The national selection committee, under the supervision of chief selector Inzamamul Haq, will monitor training camps of both national team and Pakistan A side which will take place in Abbottabad and Lahore respectively as preparation for the upcoming tour of England.

Inzamam and the rest of his selection committee members, including Tauseef Ahmad, Wasim Haider and Wajahatullah Wasti, are expected to gather in Lahore next week before splitting up into groups of two to analyse the fitness of players.

As many as 60 players were named for the two camps, with 35 players picked for the national team camp and 25 for the other.

At the Abbottabad camp, the two selectors will be assisted by Pakistan Army trainers, while fielding coach Grant Luden will also be at hand.

Co-selector Tauseef said that the selection committee wants to check the fitness of all the players first-hand before naming the squads.

“Inzamam has got a clear plan and vision, which bodes well for Pakistan cricket. The tour of England is an important one and we want to start our tenure on a positive note,” Tauseef told The Express Tribune.

“Moreover, our job becomes much easier when we watch the fitness of players closely and so players can’t complain of injustice.”

The new selection committee made some bold moves in its first assignment as they axed the star duo of Umar Akmal and Ahmad Shahzad citing their disciplinary issues, while former T20 captain Shahid Afridi was excused.

Seeking a pardon, Shahzad later wrote to the Pakistan Cricket Board and assured the board that it will not receive any more complaints against him in future.

The 24-year-old opener also tried to convince Inzamam to include him in the fitness camp but his pleas have so far fallen on deaf ears. It seems more and more likely that Shahzad will have to train on his own as the selectors are in no mood to bring him back in tothe fold anytime soon.

Akmal, meanwhile, has said that he will try to stage a comeback by doing well in the county season for Leicestershire.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 14^th, 2016.

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