SHAHID AFRIDI’S RETURN TO PAKISTAN TEAM REMAINS BESIEGED

Shahid Afridi’s return to the Pakistan national squad still remains in shambles after a meeting, involving various sportspersons and officials such as the Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) Chairman, Ijaz Butt, who called on President Asif Ali Zardari in Karachi, concluded without any discussion on the hard hitter’s return to the national roster.

Previously, the estranged Afridi had awaited the meeting with the nation’s Premier, who is also the Chief Patron of the PCB, hoping that the rendezvous may come out with some conclusion for the ‘Boom Boom’ Khan’s ongoing rift with PCB and its infamous Chairman Butt.

However, not just Afridi, another former Pakistani Captain, Javed Miandad, who is now a senior PCB official, and ironically shares a similar faith as Afridi, also had planned on discussing his rift with Butt and the Board since Miandad was slammed by PCB for not responding to a show cause notice that was issued to him for ‘violating his terms of employment’ after Miandad came out with loud criticism against PCB’s flawed working practices, citing that 90% of the Board’s decisions are erroneous.

Unfortunately, for both the former skippers, it was Butt, who as expected, outplayed Afridi and Miandad, as none of their issues were raised during the meeting.

In case of Afridi, though the player was present at the meeting, alongside other cricket veterans such asMohsin Khan, it was learnt that the President concluded the meeting without having a one-to-one word with Afridi.

On the other hand, Miandad was outplayed after his request to shift the upcoming national Twenty20 event from Lahore to Karachi due to threats of the dengue outbreak were turned down by Butt.

According to a source, rather than finding a notion to the conflict, it was learnt that the President’s main concern during the rendezvous revolved around how the cricket fraternity can help the government in raising funds for the flood victims in Sindh.

As for Afridi, the Pakistani heartthrob, who recently led his roster close to a World Cup final, left the Bilawal House without speaking to the media, after it was also found out that the Premier failed to heed on the star player’s issue.