Speaking exclusively to PakPassion.net former Pakistan all rounder Mohammad Hafeez said that seeing the ICL players being selected for Pakistan was hard to take for a number of players on the domestic circuit.

"Many of us, myself included turned down the chance to play in the ICL, as we wanted to continue to play domestic cricket and above all play for our country. We turned down a lot of money and made a huge sacrifice when we said no to the ICL, as we did not want to jeopardize our international futures. Having done that, we now find ourselves in a situation where ICL players are not only back playing domestic cricket, but some are back playing for the national team. They walk away for 1 year or so, reap the rewards and then walk back into first class cricket and then into international cricket. Anyway such is life, there is no need for me or others to feel bitter about it" stated the Sui Gas captain.

Hafeez continued "The season's going well for Sui Gas, we have played on some very bowler friendly wickets and it's been pretty tough to bat out there. We certainly havent had the batsman friendly conditions that the Karachi boys have had. I would say that a score of 40 or 50 on these wickets, equates to a century on some of the flatter wickets".

Hafeez stated that he was very pleased with Sui Gas' form in the Quaid E Azam Trophy this season. "We have won four out of four matches and the boys are playing some good cricket. We have a good combination in the team and today's win against KRL was a very pleasing one. Personally I'm very happy with my form and I'm working hard on my game. Of course like many other players out there I hope for another chance for Pakistan".

Looking back on his international career Hafeez feels that his performances were acceptable. "I played a lot of my matches against South Africa, Australia and England and if you look at my one day economy rate of 4.45 which is more than acceptable for an opening batsman. More often than not I was expected to bowl 10 overs and to have that option from an opening batsman gives the team more flexibility. If you look at the current combination in the Pakistan team, it is not right, as a lot of the time they are only playing with 5 "proper" batsman which puts pressure on the lower order".

When asked about how he found batting against lanky KRL left armer Mohammad Irfan, Hafeez said "I had an advantage in that I had faced him at the Academy in Lahore when Aamir Sohail was working with both of us. Against us I feel that Irfan's line was good but he bowled a little too short. I kept on saying to him that if you bowl me a bouncer I will hit you for four. He needs to work on his length and to build up a bit more pace. His obviously generates a lot of bounce, so if he can pitch the ball in the right areas he could be an even tougher proposition. He's a hard working cricketer and I'm sure he will do well and will take 50 wickets in this season's Quaid E Azam Trophy".