Credits: X
Fakhar Zaman, who recently received a show-cause notice from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), will reportedly be dropped from the upcoming white-ball ODI tour against Australia. Zaman recently voiced his support for his teammate Babar Azam. For the unheard, the 34-year-old cricketer earlier expressed his support against Babar Azam's exclusion from Pakistan's squad for the ongoing tour in England and compared his situation to Virat Kohli's.
As per a report by Cricket Pakistan, Fakhar's public criticism against the board's decision drew flak from authorities, who issued a show-cause notice and are now dropping him from the upcoming Australia tour. Further, Fakhar failed to complete the two-kilometer race within eight minutes. According to reports, the opening batsman is facing a knee injury, which could also be the reason for dropping him from the upcoming tour.
Fakhar Zaman's Viral Tweet That Resulted in Deep Trouble
In a viral tweet, Zaman described Babar as a "premier batsman" and criticized the decision to exclude him from the tour. It further mentioned that the situation is sending "a deeply negative message across the team."
He posted his tweet on his official X (formerly known as Twitter) account shortly before the announcement of the 16-member squad for the remaining test against England. He further described the situation to Indian batsman Virat Kohli, who continued playing for the Indian team despite having a rough period between 2020 and 2023.
Here is the tweet:
He wrote, "If we are considering sidelining our premier batsman, arguably the best Pakistan has ever produced, it could send a deeply negative message across the team. There is still time to avoid pressing the panic button; we should focus on safeguarding our key players rather than undermining them."
Fakhar's Past Remarks against PCB
This is not the first time that opening batsman Fakhar has come out in public against PCB. He made candid remarks about PCB's new policy on handing over No Objection Certificates (NOCs) to Pakistani players for overseas T20 league participation.
Cricket experts believe that Fakhar could be PCB's potential choice to replace Babar Azam as captain of the Pakistan team for the upcoming cricket tours in Australia, Zimbabwe, and South Africa. However, the latest report says veteran wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan will be leading the team.
The Pakistan team is set to tour Australia in November to play three ODIs and three T20I matches.
