After Naseem Shah, another Pakistan U19 player Mohammad Shehzad accused of age-fudging

Instances of ade-fudging are prevalent in cricket ever since it’s inception. A plethora of cricketers have been accused of forging their age. Moreover, Pakistan and its association with age-fudging instances has been a never-ending affair. Recently, Former England spinner Graeme Swann had shockingly accused Pakistan all-rounder Shoaib Malik of lying about his age during the 2017 Champions Trophy.

Many Pakistan youngsters including the teenage sensation Naseem Shah- who made his debut against Australia- have been accused of forging their age. Meanwhile, yet another Pakistan youngster has been accused to falsify his age. Pakistan’s U19 all-rounder Mohammad Shehzad is the newest addition to the age-forging saga. In January 2019 in a video, Shehzad had stated that his Date of Birth was 5 February 2004. However, he has now revealed that he is 14 years old & his Date of Birth is now 10 October 2005.

Recently, many former cricketers including Rashid Latif had slammed Pakistan Cricket Board over the players’ age-fudging controversy. In a tweet, Latif had urged the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to refrain from making a joke of itself.

“Pakistani Cricket Team’s players are going to U-19s. U-19s are going to U-16s, U-16s to U-13s & U-13s back to their mothers’ laps. For God’s sake PCB, correct the ages & don’t destroy (your reputation) by working with crooked diploma doctors, don’t make a joke of yourself,” Rashid Latif had tweeted.

Mohammad Shehzad has delivered consistent performances at U13 and U16 level

Shehzad marked his arrival in PCB recognised cricket when he played the PCB-Inter Regional U13 T20 tournament in 2017. He scored 178 runs in three matches with the help of two half-centuries. Shehzad’s consistent performances in the U13 level helped him a spot in the Multan U16 side.

His recent exploits were against Bangladesh U16 in Pakistan, where he amassed 72 runs in two One-day matches and 126 runs in two three-day matches. Following his current run of form, Shehzad was included in Pakistan’s U19 squad for the upcoming U19 Cricket World Cup. The much-awaited tournament is scheduled to be held in South Africa from 17 January to 9 February 2020. Pakistan are slotted in Group C along with Bangladesh, Scotland and Zimbabwe.

Watch: Mohammad Shehzad sets eyes on ICC U19 World Cup