Afridi: We Don't Have To Beg For Play

Afridi - telling it like it is.

All-rounder Shahid Afridi believes the Pakistan Cricket Board should stop begging other leading nations for international matches to compensate for the postponement of the Champions Trophy.

The International Cricket Council on Sunday decided to postpone the eight-team tournament, originally scheduled to be held in Lahore and Karachi from September 12 to 28, until October next year.

The decision leaves Pakistan, who have not played a Test match at home this year, with a huge hole in their calendar.

The PCB's chief operating officer Shafqat Naghmi on Monday said his country was looking to secure a bilateral series with a leading Test-playing nation.

But Afridi believes Pakistan would be better off not playing especially as September is the holy month of Ramadan.

"I don't think we need to beg countries to play against us, especially during Ramadan," Afridi was quoted as saying by the The News.

"I mean, we have international cricket coming up later this year and then there is the series against India (early next year)."

Afridi's suggestion, however, has been curtly dismissed by the PCB.

"If Afridi wants a Ramadan break, he can inform the board about it," Naghmi reacted.

"In any case we would pick only players who are fully committed to the national team."

Earlier this year, the PCB accepted a request from top-order batsman Mohammad Yusuf to be left out of the national team as he did not wish to play during Ramadan.