Kamran Akmal chooses the best batsman between Virat Kohli Steve Smith and Joe Root

Pakistan wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal finished the recently concluded Quaid-e-Azam Trophy 2019-20 as the tournament’s second-highest run-scorer. He also had a brilliant run in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) last year as he scored 906 runs in just 11 matches. However, Kamran Akmal was still overlooked by the Pakistani selectors for the three-match home T20I series against Bangladesh in January.

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Kamran Akmal chooses Virat Kohli over Steve Smith and Joe Root

While interacting with the fans on Twitter, Kamran Akmal was asked to pick his favourite batsman between Virat Kohli, Steve Smith and Joe Root. Kamran Akmal chose Virat Kohli over Steve Smith and Joe Root as the best batsman of the modern generation.

Virat Kohli has continued with his good form with both the willow and the captaincy. Virat Kohli is currently the No.1 ranked batsman in Tests and ODIs. In T20Is, he is ranked ninth. 

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Kamran Akmal Mocks Ex-coach Mickey Arthur

While speaking on a talk show, Kamran Akmal slammed former coach Mickey Arthur for bringing in the culture of fitness tests in the team. He said that it was Arthur who started setting fitness as the biggest criteria for picking and dropping players. He even went to the extent of saying that Pakistan cricket was on a decline.

Kamran Akmal said that skills of the players should be prioritised above fitness standards. He added that players like Abid Ali, who have put in stellar performances for Pakistan in ODIs and Tests in recent times, have had to face embarrassment for their fitness. Recently, Abid Ali became the first male cricketer to score a ton on his ODI as well as Test debut.

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Kamran Akmal went on to question about the number of fitness tests Younis Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq had given during their times. He added that Mickey Arthur, who came to Pakistan, started the problem of fitness tests.

He also said these policies won’t make players focus on fitness and because of such policies, Pakistan cricket was going down. Akmal added that the likes of Inzamam-ul-Haq and Shoaib Akhtar contributed the most for Pakistan due to their single-minded focus on batting and bowling respectively and not the way they looked or kept fit.

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IMAGE CREDIT: ICC TWITTER