Would never be able to shake off the nepotism tag, comments Imam ul Haq
Pakistani opening batsman, Imam ul Haq has commented that fans of Pakistan cricket would never accept him for his performances because of the nepotism tag. Imam, who has been performing well for Pakistan in limited-overs cricket, has been one of the few bright spots for the team in recent years.
Imam who made his international debut for Pakistan in 2019, has been performing well for the team in ODI cricket averaging 54 in the 36 games that he has played. However several within the Pakistan cricketing community accuse the selectors of nepotism for including Imam in the team.
"I don't think it will change unfortunately," Imam told The Cricketer. "The people will never accept me. That's what I think. I will be very pleased if people were to accept me as Imam-ul-Haq and not as someone's nephew," comments Imam, as quoted by The Cricketer
Though Imam has been performing well in ODI cricket, he has not been able to carry his form across to red-ball cricket. Compared to his stellar average in ODI cricket, Imam averages 28 from 10 Test matches.
"People think he instructed Mickey Arthur to select me. People need to realize that we are living in in a time where you can't hide anything from the media. I won't be in the team without my performance."
With Inzamam stepping down as the chief selector after Pakistan group stage exit from the World cup, Imam has a chance to prove to the fans as well as other cricketers that he has earned the right to be in the team and he is vowed to do that.
"They don't see that I've gone through the process. They only see that I'm a nephew of Inzamam and they believe that they have the right to criticise me. I cry a lot when Pakistan lose. Its hurts me if people criticise Babar Azam or Mohammad Amir. I know what we all go through to give our best for the team," said Imam.