Confusion over Kamran continues

Lahore: Confusion prevails over whether the Pakistan Cricket Board has cleared discarded wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal for national selection after he was ignored for the tour to Sri Lanka.

The national selectors this week announced separate squads for the Tests, ODIs and T20 matches. Chief selector, Iqbal Qasim, added to the confusion while announcing the team when he said Kamran was not considered because of clearance issue from the PCB. "We will consider him when he is cleared by the board for consideration for national selection," he said. But a senior board official insisted that there was no issue with the integrity of Kamran and he was cleared to be considered for national selection. "There is apparently some misunderstanding because there is nothing pending against Kamran and he is clear from us," the official said. Kamran, one of Pakistan`s senior most players, has not played for Pakistan since the 2011 World Cup. Although active in domestic cricket, the general impression given by authorities has been that he was not considered for selection because of integrity issues which had also been raised by the ICC in the past before the World Cup. Kamran`s name cropped up during the spot-fixing trial of Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamir in London. "I have performed well in domestic cricket and even in the Bangladesh Premier League and I was confident of being selected since after I met with the board chairman and other officials they said there was no issue with me and I could be considered for national selection," Kamran said. Kamran said his disappointment also stemmed from the fact that he was fed up with the allegations emerging in the media, which had also affected his family members. "I want to get rid of this stigma once for all. I have performed well and I think I deserved to be selected. What more am I supposed to do to prove myself. If the board has anything against me it should be clear about it and I will leave playing cricket." PTI