The 2012 list of centrally contracted players was announced by the PCB this week, and it yet again proved to be a mixed bag of acceptable and unusual decisions. One omission, not a surprise anymore, was Fawad Alam. Why does he continue to go unnoticed by the selectors, the media, and the majority of fans?

By Shayan Siddiqui (May 28th 2012)

The 2012 list of centrally contracted players was announced by the PCB this week, and it yet again proved to be a mixed bag of acceptable and unusual decisions. Whilst the board deserves praise for continuing to award stipend contracts to the up and coming talent in the country, giving a category C contract to Faisal Iqbal, a player that has not represented Pakistan since 2010, was downright bizarre. Kamran Akmal and Abul Razzaq have not been given a contract, having fallen out of favour with the selectors, and this makes Iqbal’s inclusion all the more surprising.

Mohammad Sami, having been selected in all 3 squads, will also have been confused as to how he missed out on a contract altogether. Saeed Ajmal, Abdur Rehman, Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq were all rightfully rewarded for their roles in the whitewash of England, as they moved up a category from last year. Ajmal and Rehman are now in category A, highlighting the importance and impact of Pakistan’s spin attack in recent months. We have however, recently learned that the central contracts were announced based on players “standings” in early April. Considering the team has taken part in, and won, the Asia Cup since then, this seems like a very flawed approach from the PCB.

One other omission, not a surprise anymore, was Fawad Alam. He seems to go unnoticed by the selectors, the media, and the majority of fans despite sterling performances in domestic cricket. He topped the batting charts in the Pentangular Cup 2010-11, and also finished as the third highest run scorer in the last edition of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, just behind Afaq Raheem and Mohammad Ayub Dogar, and ahead of Haris Sohail. Whereas Raheem, Dogar and Sohail were all given stipend contracts by the PCB, Fawad is not in the picture.

There seems to be no justifiable reason to ignore Fawad in this manner, and there was certainly no justification for dropping him just three games into his test career. He remains a thorough professional however, and in a recent interview with Pakpassion.net, he expressed his hopes of donning the national colours again in the near future.

“I have never lost hope of an international return in the past, nor will I ever in the future. Whenever a player gets dropped from the team, his only goal is to make a comeback after performing well in domestic cricket. I believe in myself and thankfully I’ve been performing well on a consistent basis. God-willing, I will come back soon. I'm focussed and hopeful that another chance will come my way to represent Pakistan once again.”

Fawad stated “It’s good that some players have been recalled and given another chance. They have earned it through their performances in domestic cricket. I wish them all the best and I hope they will perform well.”

“It’s a step that shows nobody has been forgotten by the selectors and that those who perform well will get the opportunity to play sooner or later. I’ve also been performing well and I will try my best to continue to do that, so I can make an international comeback soon. I am working hard – the rest is in Allah’s hands” Fawad concluded. 

Those that support Fawad are not in any way suggesting that he will become a legend of the game. The point is that most young cricketers must go through a process in order to get to the national side. That process involves performing in domestic cricket in order to catch the eye of the selectors. They then need to try and perform early in their international career to keep their place.

The best any young domestic batsman could possibly do is dominate first class cricket, obtain the highest average for any Pakistani, and then make a century on test debut away from home, that too in an unfamiliar batting position. Fawad did all that, and was dropped 2 games later. The selectors appeared to judge his test ability based on his performances in the shorter formats and, as a result, he hasn’t been picked since.

Many fans complain about the likes of Imran Farhat and Faisal Iqbal because they find a place in the squads despite not performing at domestic level. Having treated Fawad so badly, where is the incentive for any young batsman in Pakistan to try and score heavily in first class cricket, when it appears to have no bearing on selection for the national side?

It's not about Fawad Alam, his technique, or his ability to hit boundaries. It's about the principle of having a first class structure in place which should then feed through to the national team. The best player produced by that first class structure was only given 3 tests to showcase his ability, despite having scored 168 in the first one. It’s a matter that the PCB, the media, and the fans need to look at to ensure such unjust treatment isn’t repeated.

Discuss!