'If you are close to the captain, you will get a proper run' - Junaid Khan lashes out at the Pakistan team management

Junaid Khan last played an international for the Pakistan side on 17th May 2019. Since then, the left-arm seamer has not managed to wear the Pakistan jersey in the international arena. And now, Junaid Khan has opened up on a few issues within the Pakistan side.

The left-arm pacer stated that a Pakistan player will get a chance to prove his worth only if he is in good terms with the management or the captain. Citing his own example, Khan said that he had asked for some rest, but was denied the same.

He further added that he had entered into the ‘bad books’ and was disliked. Khan even alleged that even though he performed well, he was never given a chance.

“It is like if you are on good terms with the captain and team management then you will probably get a proper run in all formats to prove your worth. If you don’t have close relations with them then you are in and out.

I used to be part of the national team in all three formats. I used to ask for rest but I wasn’t given rest. Then came a time when I got in the bad books and was being ignored due to likes and dislikes. I was performing but was not being given a proper chance,” said Khan as quoted by CricketPakistan.com.

“If you belong to the big city, then people will raise their voice for you,” says Junaid Khan

Junaid Khan further alleged that if a player is from a small town, there is no media coverage and there is no pressure on the national selectors to select a player from a small town. Khan also added that left-arm pacer Shaheen Afridi is in desperate need of rest, but is not provided the same by the management.

“If you belong to a big city, then people raise their voice for you. People like me and Yasir Shah are from Swabi. There is no TV channel or media person from Swabi, so there is no pressure on selectors regarding our selection from the media.

Shaheen definitely needs rest. The management needs to make sure he doesn’t bowl a lot during the net sessions. Shaheen probably doesn’t want to rest himself because he might have fear of losing his place to a youngster, who might perform in his place,” said Khan.

Khan also said that he was offered a lot of money from the USA, but he refused as he still wants to play for Pakistan. The 31-year-old further gave vent to his feelings and said that in Pakistan culture, if a player performs for six years, but does not do well even for a couple of games, he will be replaced. He added that the players are insecure about their place in the side.

“I am being offered more money than what I earned while playing for Pakistan during my peak. However, I refused the offer as I still want to represent Pakistan. In our culture, even if a player performs for six years and then doesn’t do well in two games, he is replaced by a new player who has done well in only a few games. Everyone forgets that player’s performances for the last six years and instead prefers younger talent. So, our players are insecure about losing their place,” said Khan.

Junaid Khan added that the Pakistan side should learn about workload management from England, and concluded by stating that the England players are secure about their place in the team.

“We should learn about managing workload from England. During their recent Test series against India, they rotated James Anderson and Stuart Broad. Broad and Anderson would rest even after taking five or six wickets in the previous match. That is because they are secure of their place in the team. They know they will play in the future matches,” concluded Khan.