If fit, I may continue after world cup, reveals Shoaib Malik

Former Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik has taken his retirement plans to a back seat. After the World Cup in England last year, Malik has been constantly ignored by the selectors and represented Rajshahi Royals where he had a mixed bag BPL. But against all the odds, the right-hander scored a match-winning 58 not out which helped Pakistan pip Bangladesh at home.

“Yes I had said I will retire from ODI cricket after the World Cup (in 2019) and I did that and I also said I might retire completely after the World Cup T20. But right now I think it is about short-term goals when the time comes I will think about it,” Malik told reporters in Lahore, reported PTI.

The former Pakistan skipper had a dreadful world cup where he couldn't buy a run for his team. He featured in three matches where he scored only 8 runs, after those terrible performances he was left out of the playing XI. But in T20 cricket, the aggressive middle order batsman has a phenomenal record over the years which propelled Misbah-Ul-Haq to bring him back to the squad.

“I am a human being and I can also fail and yes I can also have negative thoughts and get angry for what happened. My performances in the World Cup were not good but I have always performed well in the T20 format,” he said.

The 38-year-old, for the very first time, was not handed the central contract for Pakistan. He also agreed to that fact that new management is now looking to move forward and ready to give chances to the youngsters who will help in building a balanced outfit.

Reacting to the question Malik showed optimism on his snub saying “We have a lot of youngsters coming through. So they looked at it that way and this time they have also reduced the number of players who were given central contracts. I just want to perform and help groom the youngsters in the dressing room. I and Hafeez want to share our experiences with them,” he concluded.