The only Pakistani cricketer Azam Khan, has been denied NOC for the ILT20 2023. And the fans are more than upset to hear this announcement.
When the UAE t20 league was announced, players were being gathered from all teams. However, there was only one Pakistani part of this tournament. That was the well-known wicketkeeper, Azam Khan. He was signed to be a part of the Desert Vipers. It was the only franchise that was not owned by an Indian.
The Wicket-Keeper Batsmen Azam Khan won’t be given No-Objection Certificate to play the first edition of ILT20
According to the latest news, Azam Khan has dropped his participation in the much-awaited ILT20. NOCs were not granted to any Pakistani player. According to a source from UAE t-20 tournament,
“We have received correspondence from the PCB that NOCs are not being granted to the Pakistan players. It was up to the owners whether to take Pakistan players or not and at least one owner, Lancer Capital, were interested.”
While it was only a rumor at the start, a PCB official confirmed this news. They said that Pakistan players will not be taking part in the International League T20 (ILT20) as well as SA20 (South Africa League). The PCB Official further stated,
“No player has formally applied for an NOC. When a request is made, it will be reviewed by the concerned authorities.”
But what’s the reason? Well, you can easily point out the fact that most franchises in the Emirates T20 League are owned by Indians. Pakistan and India are not exactly allies. In fact, their diplomatic tension is apparent to the world. That could be the reason why Pakistani cricketers were not selected for the tournament.
Due to the increasing buzz after the confirmation by PCB, one representative of a Pakistani player stated,
“I am sure you must have seen the recent developments where PCB have declared through a press release that they are considering ILT20 and South Africa League for their players. Given this, would you still be keen on the players we discussed? Like Shaheen Afridi and Rizwan (Mohammad Rizwan) bhai, we are also bringing Babar Azam to the table now because of these recent developments from the PCB.”
Even though this news took many turns, Azam Khan was surprised by it. He claimed that he was unaware of the NOC status. That could point to the lack of communication between PCB and franchise owners of the International League T20 (ILT20).
Summary
This news can be a bummer to all Pakistani cricket fans. However, there’s no need to be disappointed. Although Azam Khan was not selected, there are still many favorite players you can count on. Stay tuned for more updates on the much-awaited Emirates League 2023.