Wasim Akram, the Sultan of Swing and former captain of Pakistan, expressed disapproval of all-rounder Faheem Ashraf’s inclusion in the ICC Champions Trophy roster, describing it as “out of the blue.”
Akram questioned Faheem’s performance during a franchise news conference, saying, “He has a bowling average of 100 and a batting average of just 9 in his first 20 games. What else can I say?
Akram was also taken aback by Pakistan’s approach, pointing out that although teams all around the globe are adding more spinners because of subcontinental pitches, Pakistan is only bringing one specialist spinner, Abrar Ahmed, to the tournament.
In the Champions Trophy 2025, Wasim Akram also supported the notion of having Pakistan’s top batsman start the inning with Fakhar Zaman.
“I might ask Babar to open the inning and would prefer to see Rizwan as a middle-order hitter.” Babar’s skill is excellent. He stated in a media appearance that “the batting will revolve around him if he plays 50 overs and scores a hundred.”
