Mickey Arthur Says His Comments Made on Fawad Alam and Sohail Khan Got Lost in Translation

Pakistan head coach Mickey Arthur has stated that his statements made on Sohail Khan and Fawad Alam were taken out of context and actually he had a very good relationship with both and what he said was totally given a different meaning. Talking to a correspondent, Arthur further revealed that he complimented the fast bowler Sohail Khan for his skills and work ethics. He lauded him for his efforts, however, he conceded that the competition in the team is very intense.

“He [Sohail Khan] has been great in this regard however the competition for places is very intense, which is also great for Pakistan cricket at this point in time. We are looking for players who are great in the field as well as. That is an important aspect of the game”, Arthur said.

Arthur also clarified the statement he made of Fawad Alam and stated that it was misconstrued.

“I said Fawad needed to push the boundaries in terms of performance not hit more boundaries.  Fawad came to the centre of excellence and we worked with him. Like everybody else, Fawad will also be considered for selection based on performance,” the head coach revealed.

Alam who averages over 40 in One Day Internationals have played some impressive knocks in this format but Arthur feels that he needs to keep scoring runs and hit more boundaries in order to get a recall in the national side.

“I said Fawad needed to push the boundaries in terms of performance not hit more boundaries”, Arthur explained.

Meanwhile, Sohail Khan’s age was reportedly not on his side as he was a decade too old for Arthur’s likings.

“My comments were, in fact, positive and got lost in translation I am afraid”, Arthur concluded.

Arthur is known to be a vocal character who always tends to keep his players on the toes and has taken some harsh decisions during his tenure as a coach. The Sarfaraz-Arthur duo is paying rich dividends for Pakistan and it was under them Pakistan won the Champions Trophy for the first time in June.