Virat Kohli’s career took off because he was nurtured by Dhoni but in Pak, seniors can’t digest your success: Ahmed Shehzad
Ahmed Shehzad may not be a name which casual cricket fans would be familiar with but he was one of the more notable names in Pakistan cricket not too long ago.
Often compared to India’s Virat Kohli due to his look and playing style, the Pakistani batter’s career never quite reached the heights that was once expected of him.
In a recent interview to Cricket Pakistan, Shehzad said that while Virat Kohli’s career took off due to the support of Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the seniors in the Pakistan squad hampered his (Shehzad) career.
“I have said this before and I will say it again, Kohli’s career picked off amazingly because he found MS Dhoni but unfortunately, here in Pakistan, your own people cannot stand your success.”
“Our own senior players and ex-cricketers cannot digest seeing someone succeed in the cricketing world, which is unfortunate for Pakistan cricket,” he said.
He also said that while Kohli is struggling for form for the past two years, the Indian management has been patient with him but when it came to Shehzad, he was cast aside after just 2 matches.
“Kohli’s been struggling for form for the past two years, I was cast aside after two matches. I was told to perform in the Faisalabad tournament and I was the highest score there but still I was not handed another chance,” he said in the interview.
He namedropped then-Pakistan coach Waqar Younis’ 2016 report which put a dent on his career.
Younis had written in his report that Shehzad and Umar Akmal must play domestic cricket to get back in the side.
“I have not seen the report myself but a PCB official told me that these remarks have been said regarding me. But I believe that these things should be discussed face-to-face and I am ready to take on that challenge. Then we will see who is right and who is wrong,” the 30-year-old Shehzad said in the interview.
Shehzad has scored more than 5,000 runs across the three formats with 10 centuries but he has been out of international action since 2019.
