All-rounder Khushdil Shah has denied reports that he was considering quitting Pakistan cricket after a prolonged absence from the national side (Geo News).
“There’s fake news going around claiming I’m leaving Pakistan cricket and it’s completely untrue,” he wrote on his Instagram stories on Friday. “Pakistan is my home, and representing this country has always been my top priority and greatest honour.” He asked fans not to believe the reports, adding: “Please don’t believe these baseless rumours. My commitment to Pakistan cricket has never changed and never will.”
The speculation began when a two-month-old interview resurfaced online on Friday, in which fellow all-rounder Abbas Afridi said Shah had told him he had around four months left in him, and that if he did not receive a national call-up by then he would have to leave Pakistan. The claim spread quickly on social media and was read as a signal that Shah was preparing to end his international career.
Shah, 31, made his debut in November 2019 and has played 15 ODIs and 38 T20Is. His last appearance came at the ACC Men’s T20 Asia Cup last year, where he played a single group-stage match against the United Arab Emirates and scored four. He did not retain his place for the rest of the tournament and was subsequently dropped.
The gap between the reported remark and the denial is not necessarily a contradiction: a private comment about frustration with selection, made months ago and surfaced without its context, is a different thing from a decision to retire. What Shah has denied is the latter.
