Wahab Riaz still lacks the ability to pick wickets at regular intervals: Waqar Younis

Waqar Younis was somewhat ‘dishonorably discharged’ following the World T20 debacle, something that ended in rather terribly for the Pakistanis. However, these days, the former Pakistani pacer is reduced to sharing his opinions on social media and other media platforms.

This also witnesses the fact that Waqar believes that Wahab Riaz is not ready for the role of being the leader of the Pakistan pace attack. In addition, Waqar said that Wahab’s consistency was something that let him down rather consistently in recent times.

“When you are fast and in the team as a strike bowler, you are expected to take more wickets and do that more regularly,” Waqar was quoted as saying by Dawn on Wednesday.

Speaking about Riaz’s wickets tally, Waqar said, “Riaz has that ability and he’s that kind of a bowler who can pick up regular wickets. But, given the number of matches he has played, he should have taken at least 80 to 90 Test wickets. He’s a better bowler than a two-three-wicket one.”

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The Dawn quoted Waqar as saying, “It was a good effort on his part and getting five wickets is no mean feat, but you need to make the batsmen play more. Beating the edge or going close to the stumps is ok but when you have the tail in front of you, being a fast bowler you need to ensure you wrap things up as soon as possible.”

Waqar Younis also brought up the time when Wahab’s spell made Shane Watson grovel in Adelaide in the 2015 World Cup.

The Dawn quoted him as saying, “People talk about his effort against Shane Watson in Adelaide or that effort in Abu Dhabi against England last year. He needs to ensure he doesn’t sit on those laurels and add more wickets to his tally. Beating the bat isn’t enough. We expect more from him and more regularly as well. “