Saleem Malik should be given another chance like BCCI gave to Mohammad Azharuddin: Inzamam-ul-Haq

Several players, even after breaking into the national side, fail to dazzle at the international stage due to inconsistent performances or controversy-marred career. Over the years, many players have failed to live up to their potential. Considering the talent which they possessed, the world did not witness their full potential at the international level.

One such cricketer was Pakistan’s Saleem Malik. He had an impressive record as he scored 5768 runs in 103 Test matches and 7170 runs in 283 ODIs for Pakistan. However, Malik was handed a life ban in 2000 by Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for match-fixing. But his ban was lifted in 2008 by a Lahore local court.

Former Pakistan skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq has come out in support of Malik and has stated that he should be given a second chance to give it back to the sport. Inzamam cited the example of former Indian skipper Mohammad Azharuddin and said that Malik should be involved in some kind of cricket-related activities.

“Like in India, former captain Mohammad Azharuddin was also named once, but he is now the President of the Hyderabad Cricket Association. Similarly, Malik should also be involved in some kind of cricket-related activities,” Inzamam said in a video uploaded on his YouTube channel.

‘Malik deserves a second chance’: Inzamam-ul-Haq

Inzamam also lamented over Malik’s career and opined that he deserves to get a second chance to do something for the country. Inzamam also heaped praise of Malik and compared him with the likes of Mohammad Yousuf, Zaheer Abbas and Babar Azam. Considering the fact the Malik has played over 100 Tests for Pakistan, Inzamam feels that Malik has still a lot to give back to Pakistan.

“It is unfortunate to see that his career ended like that. It should not have ended that way. But I believe he deserves a second innings to do something for the country,” said Inzamam.

“The way Mohammad Yusuf used to play, the way Zaheer Abbas used to or the way Babar Azam plays, Malik was also the same type of player. He has played more than 100 Tests for Pakistan and scored more than 7000 runs.”

“The new generation might not have seen him play but he was a great player. I have never seen someone analyse the game as well as he used to do. He might have been away from the game for more than 10-15 year but he still has a lot to give back,” added the former Pakistan skipper.

Here’s the video: