Woes: ‘Kamran needs to improve his keeping’

Mohsin advises discarded keeper to improve keeping, not batting.

KARACHI: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chief Selector Mohsin Khan has advised discarded wicket-keeper Kamran Akmal to improve his performance behind the stumps as he strives to make a comeback to the national team.

Kamran, who has over 400 dismissals across the three formats, was dropped after the World Cup and has been overlooked since then.

His poor wicket-keeping, where he missed crucial catches including Ross Taylor’s against New Zealand, meant that Pakistan paid the price each time.

Kamran, with 2,648 runs in 53 Tests and 2,924 in 137 One-Day Internationals, has often been preferred due to his batting ability. But the chief selector made it clear that the only way for Kamran to earn his place was with an impressive performance with the gloves.

“We are looking for a genuine wicket-keeper,” Khan told The Express Tribune. “We’ve decided not to prefer a glovesman on his batting ability. We won’t mind selecting a weak batsman with exceptional wicket-keeping skills to fill the slot.

“Kamran will have to show improvement with the gloves to impress the selectors.”

Kamran, who expressed his disappointment on being overlooked for the PCB central contracts for the second part of the year, was replaced by Mohammad Salman for the West Indies tour after the World Cup.

A poor show by Salman prompted the selectors to bring back Kamran’s brother Adnan Akmal for the Zimbabwe series.

‘Adnan, Sarfraz show promise’

Khan added that Adnan and Sarfraz Ahmed, who were given central contracts, have the necessary skills.

“Adnan performed well on his Test debut and Sarfraz has been performing consistently on the domestic circuit. They’ve impressed with their wicket-keeping abilities and hopefully, they can perform for Pakistan with consistency if given the opportunities.”

Published in The Express Tribune, August 12^th, 2011.