Ajmal, Akram call for Pakistan players' participation in IPL
Pakistani players were sidelined from IPL following 2008 Mumbai terror attack
Karachi: Pakistan's top spinner, Saeed Ajmal has said he would definitely like to get an opportunity to play in the Indian Premier League in the future and hoped the BCCI looks into the matter.
Talking about the continued absence of Pakistani players in the lucrative T20 league, Ajmal said the organisers and the Indian Cricket Board needed to review their stance on this situation. "They have to look to give Pakistani players a chance to play in the IPL. When there are former Pakistani players present as coaches and umpires why are the present players missing. If the IPL classes itself as the best T20 tournament in the world, than it should allow the best players from any country to take part," Ajmal told 'Pakpassion' website.
"I just think this is something for the authorities to sort out and I hope there is a change of stance in the future as I definitely would like to have a chance to play in the IPL," the spinner said. Earlier this week, flamboyant all-rounder Shahid Afridi also told reporters in Lahore that it was disappointing that Pakistani players were not being allowed to play in IPL. Afridi stated that by keeping Pakistani players out of the league, Indian cricket's image had suffered.
Pakistan's former captain, Wasim Akram, who is on the coaching panel of the Kolkata Knight Riders, has also called for restoration of regular matches between Pakistan and India as said there is no bigger spectacle than a Indo-Pak cricket match. Pakistani players appeared for nearly every franchise in the first edition of the IPL in 2008 but after the Mumbai terror attacks, the event organisers and Indian board stopped inviting them for the mega event.
Asked why Pakistan couldn't defeat India in World Cup events, Ajmal said he couldn't "put a finger" on why this happened. "I cannot put my finger on any particular reason. It's not as if we are under any extra pressure or we approach those matches any differently or are overawed by the occasion or the opponents. However, rest assured we will be ready for them at the World Cup 2015. I am confident we can set the record straight when we play in Adelaide," he said.