I should have represented Pakistan on more occasions than I did: Wahab Riaz

Pakistan fast bowler Wahab Riaz has had a great year so far in T20 franchise cricket. The left-arm pacer started by leading from the front for Peshawar Zalmi by chipping in with regular wickets in power play and at the death overs. He also ably led the squad and took his team to the finals of this edition’s Pakistan Super League (PSL). Riaz continued his good form in the inaugural edition of The Hundred and took 4/30 in the first game he played for Trent Rockets.

An injury to his back cut short his The Hundred stint. But a successful recovery meant he could take part in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL). He performed well for the St Lucia Kings and has picked six wickets in five matches so far. While everyone felt Riaz would be an automatic choice in Pakistan’s squad for the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup, it was not the case as the selectors didn’t pick him.

There might yet be a few more games to come: Wahab Riaz

Overall, Riaz has played 154 matches across formats for Pakistan but has not quite been a regular member of the team for a considerable amount of time. In an exclusive interview with PakPassion.net, the 34-year-old has opened up on why he has not played for his team on more occasions.

“Yes, I feel that I should have represented Pakistan on more occasions than I did. But the major setback for me was when Pakistan’s home matches had to be shifted to UAE where spinners were needed more than pace bowlers. That period of playing home matches in UAE was detrimental to the careers of a lot of Pakistani pace bowlers including myself. But who knows what the future holds, there might yet be a few more international matches to come for myself,” Riaz told PakPassion.net

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and management have been copping a fair bit of criticism from the experts and critics for leaving out experienced players like Shoaib Malik and Sarfaraz Ahmed from the team. The selectors have gone with some fresh faces instead and have included the likes of Azam Khan, Mohammad Hasnain, and Khushdil Shah.