Kamran Akmal announces retirement from all forms of cricket
The right-handed wicketkeeper batter from Pakistan, Kamran Akmal announced his retirement from all forms of the game. The 41-year-old said he is now focused on new roles in the Pakistan Cricket Board. He was recently included in the National men’s selection committee. Akmal was place alongside Yasir Hameed and Mohammad Sami, with Haroon Rashid as chairman.
Akmal confirmed his retirement addressing a press conference in the port city. He also mentioned that he will play small leagues, depending on the responsibilities given by the PCB. “Obviously, I will not be playing cricket anymore due to new roles in PCB,” said Akmal.
The right-handed batter has appeared in 53 Tests, 157 ODIs, and 58 T20Is for Pakistan scoring 6871 runs across the formats with six Test hundreds and five hundreds in ODI. He is also the second-leading run scorer in the Pakistan Super League scoring 1,972 runs in 74 innings averaging 27.38 at the strike rate of 136.94.
He will give fair chances to players: Umar Akmal
Earlier, Kamran’s brother Umar Akmal was hopeful for his brother’s successful run as the national selector. He said that Kamran knows the game well and will give fair chances to the players. “Kamran has always been very kind to not only me but all the cricketers. Everybody learns from him. I am sure he will give fair chances to players. I wish him the best of luck,” said Umar while talking to Geosuper.tv as reported by The News from Pakistan.
Former Pakistani skipper Shahid Afridi also backed the board’s decision to appoint Kamran as the Chief of the selection committee which will select the players in trials for U-13, U-16, and U-19 regional and district teams. “Kamran is honest and hard-working. I think he is a good choice to select players at the junior level. He is bold and will not take any pressure in the selection of players,” said Afridi while speaking to a local TV.