Former Pakistan wicketkeeper Moin Khan has defended the inclusion of his son Azam Khan in the Quetta Gladiators squad for the forthcoming season of the Pakistan Super League. Azam was picked in the PSL draft as a supplementary player, raising a lot of eyebrows.
However, Moin, who is also the head coach of the franchise, defended the decision, saying that his son is a talented player, citing it as the reason behind him getting picked.
“He’s a talented player and that’s why he’s been picked. Hope he’ll perform to answer his critics. He will have to perform. He’s talented and will take time to learn as well,” he said.
Moin Khan on selection of Azam khan and on criticism why no Quetta based player in @TeamQuetta pic.twitter.com/smKzGnGjEp
— Abdul Ghaffar (@GhaffarDawnNews) November 17, 2017
“We must support all new kids, they’re all Pakistanis and future of Pakistan,” he added.
Moin Khan and the Gladiators have also been facing the head of picking any player from Balochistan during the drafts. The former player, however, responded by saying that the critics are unnecessarily making it a political issue before making it clear that no team is legally bound to pick players from its region or any other particular region.
“People are unnecessarily making it a political issue, no franchise is legally bound to include players from the region it is affiliated with. Although we believe that it is our moral duty to work for Quetta,” he said.
“Franchises are not bound to pick players from any particular region, they’re free to pick players according to their requirement and on merit. PCB has not made it mandatory for franchises,” he added.
Meanwhile, the final of the third edition of the league is scheduled to be played in Karachi. More than 15 overseas players including the likes of Darren Sammy, JP Duminy, Shane Watson, Imran Tahir, Carlos Brathwaite, Colin Ingram, Luke Ronchi, Colin Munro reportedly ready to visit Pakistan for the matches in Pakistan.
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