I don't have any personal issues or friction with Mickey Arthur: Sohail Khan

Pakistan pacer Sohail Khan has quashed all the rumours surrounding his tiff with coach Mickey Arthur and said there are no personal issues between them. Arthur has the history of lashing out at his players for each team he has coached so far and it has been no different with Pakistan. He is a type of a man who is pretty expressive and lets his emotions come out. During the Test series in England last year, Arthur criticised left-arm pacer Mohammad Irfan for his fitness and sent him home midway through the tour.

Arthur had questioned Sohail Khan’s endurance level before the start of the opening Test against Australia back in December last year. He added that Sohail had the ability to bowl some exceptional overs up front but by the time he ends his spell, he gets totally exhausted which puts that extra pressure on the other bowlers in the team.

Speaking to ABC Radio Arthur had said, “Sohail Khan comes in and swings it right arm, but I’ve got a doubt about Sohail’s comeback ability. If he has got to bowl, his first spell’s very good, his second spell’s okay, his third spell is tough and then you just don’t get anything more. That puts a lot of pressure on our other units.”

Sohail was eventually picked in the playing XI of the opening Test and following the match, Arthur had a completely different view on the bowler. He lauded him for his hard fitness regime and added that Sohail was the guy who is first to the gym and has lost 6 to 8 kilos off late. “He has bowled beautifully. He has trained exceptionally, that’s all I can say. I don’t know if you’ve seen him lately, he has lost seven-eight kilos, he’s the first guy in the gym at six in the morning.”

Following his praise, there was a controversy involving the two during the Pakistan Super League (PSL) where the pacer seemed like the reason for Arthur’s fury against the Karachi Kings. Despite all these speculations, Sohail took to his twitter handle to quash the rumours about his tiff with Arthur. “I strongly deny the rumours that Arthur and I have any personal issues or friction,” read the statement. “Our relationship is quite professional and I have great respect for him,” he wrote.

Despite all these speculations, Sohail took to his twitter handle to quash the rumours. “I strongly deny the rumours that Arthur and I have any personal issues or friction,” read the statement. “Our relationship is quite professional and I have great respect for him,” he wrote.

After bagging the best bowler award in PSL 2, Sohail was left out of the Pakistan limited-overs squad touring West Indies which led to speculations that everything was not right with him and chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq. However, he clarified that he had no issues with Inzamam nor with the other members of the committee. “I also do not have any issues with the living legend Inzamam bhai or any other selectors.”

Sohail was pretty happy with his current form and will look to put up a better performance for Pakistan in the near future. “My job is to work hard and put up a better show for Pakistan and I work on that all the time. Also, with my current form with both bat and ball, please know that I am having the time of my life.”

Sohail further claimed that there was no fight between him and Arthur during the PSL and whatever the coach told was to point out the flaws of all the players.

“There was no fight between me and Arthur,” Sohail was quoted as saying by Express Tribune when asked about the same. “He was pointing out everyone’s mistakes. He wasn’t targeting me individually. When a coach tells something to players, be it aggressively or normally, it is a player’s duty to listen to him and implement his ideas.”