Pak Board conspiring to send Akram packing

SHARJAH, MARCH 28: Any bowler, with 383 Test cricket wickets, would realise the 400-club is just around the corner. Except perhaps, the en...

SHARJAH, MARCH 28: Any bowler, with 383 Test cricket wickets, would realise the 400-club is just around the corner. Except perhaps, the enigmatic Pakistani left-armer Wasim Akram, who, it is learnt from reliable sources, is on his way out of the team.

Just the other day, Akram had expressed a wish to get to the milestone.“Maybe, I could even take a shot at Kapil Dev’s record (434, though the West Indian Courtney Walsh reached there on Monday),” Akram had told mediapersons here. Going by his potent spells, Akram’s desire did not seem too far-fetched.

Yet, a storm is already brewing in the Pakistan Cricket Board over Akram’srole. “He is not popular with a strong lobby of the Board and theydon’t want him in the side. It might take some time, as his exit is beingplanned in a phased manner, but he should consider himself lucky if heplays long enough to get to the mark,” a source within the team managementconfided.

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Akram, who was skipper till after the Australian tour and “stepped down” in the aftermath of defeats there, actually did that on the PCB dictat. Otherwise, he would have been given marching orders.

However, there is a feeling Akram still wants captaincy and with a strong following within the team, nobody knows when he will take over again. Hence, the PCB is taking no chances.

In fact, Pakistan’s defeat to Sri Lanka in the recent Test series is being attributed to a soft Saeed Anwar, who took over from Akram, not being able to assert himself.

When injury ruled Anwar out from the final Test, Akram’s trusted follower Moin Khan led Pakistan to a win in the last Test of that series. Akram too is aware of the PCB “conspiracy” against him. But since he knows he can get public sentiment on his side if he is wronged, he is picking and choosing games in his effort to defy the team management’s authority over him.

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Interestingly, apart from Moin, the others in the team management are not taking all this too well. His running feud with coach Javed Miandad being a case in point.

Akram’s playing in Monday night’s game against India took place under dramatic conditions. He had already pulled out from the game against South Africa, which Pakistan ultimately lost, citing a groin injury. When he didn’t want to play against India also, there were hectic discussionsbetween the team management and the PCB chief Taquir Zia, and it was decidedto give Akram a warning: Shape up or ship out. A substitute, ShahidNazir, was readied in Karachi just in case.

Akram realised the gravity of the situation and declared himself fit.Akram’s case is similar to that of former Indian skipper Mohammed Azharuddin. Like Akram, Azhar too had his share of problems with the Indian Board. Again, if Akram is in line for his 400th Test wicket, Azhar was two games short of making it to the 100-Test club before he made his recent comeback to the team.

Now, it’s just a question of who blinks first — Akram or the PCB.

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