KARACHI: Pakistan’s spinning all-rounder Imad Wasim Saturday announced he would come out of retirement for this year’s Twenty20 World Cup, four months after ending his international career.
The 35-year-old left-handed batter and spinner anchored Islamabad United’s title triumph in the Pakistan Super League with both bat and ball in the final on Monday.
Wasim said he wanted to play for Pakistan.
“I am happy to announce that pursuant to meeting PCB [Pakistan Cricket Board] officials, I have reconsidered my retirement and am delighted to declare my availability for Pakistan leading up to ICC [International Cricket Council] T20I World Cup,” he wrote on social media.
The 20-team World Cup will start in the United States and the West Indies from June 1 this year.
Wasim played 55 one-day internationals and 66 Twenty20Is for Pakistan and was a key all-rounder but his fitness and attitude were described as hindrance in his career by the previous selection committee.
He was part of Pakistan’s Twenty20 squad in the series against New Zealand in April last year but his axing from ODI World Cup in November prompted him to retire.
Pakistan are due to play a five-match home T20I series against New Zealand next month before touring Ireland and England for six more matches, all build-up to the World Cup.
Pakistan’s Imad Wasim reverses retirement to play Twenty20 World Cup
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Pakistan’s Imad Wasim reverses retirement to play Twenty20 World Cup
- The Pakistani all-rounder anchored Islamabad United’s title triumph in PSL tournament with bat and ball
- He announced retirement after the selection team dropped him ahead of the ODI World Cup last November
Pakistan expresses condolences as Bangladesh’s first female PM passes away
- Khaleda Zia passed away in Dhaka after prolonged illness at the age of 80, says her party
- PM Shehbaz Sharif describes Zia as a “committed friend of Pakistan” in condolence message
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday expressed condolences over the passing of Bangladesh’s first female prime minister, Khaleda Zia, describing her as a committed friend of Islamabad.
In a statement on Tuesday, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) announced its leader Zia had passed away at the age of 80 after prolonged illness. She died at the Evercare Hospital in Dhaka, where the former prime minister was admitted on Nov. 23 with symptoms of a lung infection, according to The Daily Star, a Bangladesh news website.
“Deeply saddened by the passing of Begum Khaleda Zia, Chairperson of the BNP and former Prime Minister of Bangladesh,” Sharif wrote on social media platform X.
“Her lifelong service to Bangladesh and its growth and development leaves a lasting legacy.”
Sharif said his government and people stand with the people of Bangladesh during this difficult time.
“Begum Zia was a committed friend of Pakistan,” he added.
Pakistan and Bangladesh used to be part of the same country before the latter seceded into the separate nation of Bangladesh after a bloody civil war in 1971.
Ties between the two countries have remained mostly strained since then. However, Islamabad enjoyed better relations with Dhaka under Zia’s government compared to when Bangladesh was led by her arch-rival, Sheikh Hasina.
Hasina was ousted after a violent uprising last year, leading to improved relations between Islamabad and Dhaka.
Despite years of ill health and imprisonment, Zia vowed in November to campaign in elections set for February 2026.
The BNP is widely seen as a frontrunner, and Zia’s son Tarique Rahman, who returned only on Thursday after 17 years in exile, is seen as a potential prime minister if they win a majority.
-With additional input from AFP
