Sarfaraz Ahmed plays down the rumours of having a rift with Shoaib Malik

Pakistan’s regular captain Sarfaraz Ahmed is currently spending some time away from the game having been suspended by the ICC for making racial comments on Andile Phehlukwayo. This comes as a blessing in disguise for Sarfaraz as he needed some rest playing continuously for a long time. But ever since he has been recalled from South Africa by the PCB and Shoaib Malik has taken over the reins of the team, there have been rumours of the rift between the two players.

Pakistan won the fourth ODI against South Africa which was the first game for Malik and soon after that, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced that they will announce the captain for the World Cup and England tour only after the PSL. This added fuel to the fire as many felt that Sarfaraz may not captain his country again.

There is no truth

Meanwhile, Sarfaraz Ahmed himself has played down all the rumours saying that there are no rifts in the team at the moment. He also stressed the fact that the players play to make their country and the team win and it doesn’t matter who leads the side.

“There is no truth to the claim people who play under Shoaib bhai don’t want to play under me. All the boys are very good and support each other. I don’t think there’s anything about that,” Sarfaraz was quoted as saying by ESPNCricinfo. He also clarified the negative air on him being called back from the middle of the tour saying that there was no point in travelling with the team only for a solitary match as his ban would’ve only ended after the second T20I.

“’m hopeful and expectant of a comeback. I came back because I had a four-match ban, and there was just one more match after that. So travelling with the team all that while and not playing, what with me having been away from home for five months, was very hectic. If I had come back with the team and got just three days here before going for the PSL [Pakistan Super League], that would have been very hectic. So getting the rest instead was much better,” the 31-year-old further said.

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