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Journalism of Courage
Umar Akmal, who plays for Quetta Gladiators in the Pakistan Super League, lost his cool at a journalist who asked him questions about his weight and his frequent TikTok videos.
Addressing a press conference on Sunday in Karachi, he was asked by a journalist that it appeared as though he had been spending way too much time on TikTok recently. The journalist went on to add that it appeared as though Umar had been neglecting his fitness and that his “weight was showing”.
“Who told you I was spending too much time on Tik Tok? It’s my personal life, I think you should avoid asking such questions,” a visible irritated Umar retorted.
Upon being asked to elaborate on his fitness by the same journalist, he snapped back, “My fitness is in front of you. It’s not just me, other players will also get angry if you ask them such questions.”
He added that he was feeling “super fit” after having worked hard on his fitness.
The eighth edition of the PSL will start on Monday with Umar turning out for Quetta Gladiators. The franchise has come under frequent criticism, including most notably from Shahid Afridi, for sticking with Umar despite his poor form. In PSL 7, he managed to score just 101 runs from five matches, at an average of 20.20. Over half of those runs came from a single knock, his only half-century that season.
Umar has also faced other issues. He has been charged with failing to ‘report corrupt approaches’ ahead of the PSL’s 2020 season. He was suspended for that season and was slapped with a three-year ban (which was later reduced to 12 months). He was also asked by the Court of Arbitration for Sport to shell out Pakistani Rs 4.5 million to Pakistan Cricket Board for breaching the PCB’s Anti-Corruption Code.
He has not played for the national team since November 2019 when he played in a T20 series against Sri Lanka. His last Test appearance came over a decade back, in 2011. His last ODI series in Pakistan colours was in March-April 2019 versus Australia.
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