"What more does he have to do?" - Danish Kaneria questions Sarfaraz Ahmed's omission from Pakistan's T20 World Cup 2022 squad

Former cricketer Danish Kaneria believes that Sarfaraz Ahmed should have been included in Pakistan's squad for the T20 World Cup 2022 as wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan's replacement.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, Kaneria highlighted how Sarfaraz has showcased tremendous batting form recently. He emphasized that the selectors should have gone ahead with the experienced players instead of having Mohammad Haris as one of the reserve players.

He mentioned that the team management should have given Haris consistent chances post the T20 World Cup. Kaneria suggested that he may not be able to make a significant impact if Rizwan is injured during the marquee event due to lack of experience.

Kaneria stated:

"Sarfaraz Ahmed should consider himself unlucky to miss out. He has scored a lot of runs in the ongoing National T20 Cup. What more does he have to do? Mohammad Haris, on the other hand, hasn't performed well and is averaging 18. The management is focusing on the future.

"But this is the World Cup. If they want to give Haris a chance, do it after the World Cup. He won't be able to fill Rizwan's shoes if he gets injured. You don't need an inexperienced player in such an event where he will play just to save his own place."

Kaneria further added that all the top teams have multiple options for the keeper-batter's role in their lineups for the T20 World Cup 2022. He opined that the Men in Green should have taken a cue from other sides by adding Sarfaraz to the squad, given his impressive record in the format.

He added:

"India have Rishabh Pant and Dinesh Karthik. All the other teams have kept two to three keeper-batters in their squad. But the Pakistani selectors have been unfair to Sarfaraz Ahmed. He has been a proven performer.

"He won the Champions Trophy for Pakistan in 2017 and travelled with the side for several years. He is a senior player and has done well consistently. But the selectors think otherwise. They feel that Sarfaraz is done and dusted now. But I feel he will make a strong comeback."

Sarfarz has been impressive in Pakistan's ongoing domestic tournament National T20 Cup, mustering 201 runs from his nine appearances at a fantastic average of 40.20. Haris, on the other hand, has managed 147 runs from eight games at an underwhelming average of 18.37.

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"Mohammad Hasnain could have been in the reserves with Shahnawaz Dahani coming into the main squad to add some variety" - Danish Kaneria on Pakistan's bowling attack

Kaneria also spoke about how Pakistan have similar types of pacers in their squad. He reckoned that the likes of Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf are very similar to each other.

This is why he feels that the Pakistani think tank should have picked Shahnawaz Dahani in their 15-member squad, as he adds variety to the attack with his seam bowling. He added that Dahani could have been accommodated to the team by keeping Hasnain on the standby list.

The former spinner explained:

"Pakistan have similar types of bowlers in their lineup. They all bowl at a good pace. But the selectors should have known that Shahnazwaz Dahani would have brought something different.

"Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf are almost the same kind of bowlers. Hasnain could have been in the reserves with Dahani coming into the main squad to add some variety."

Dahani was part of Pakistan's squad at the 2022 Asia Cup. However, he didn't feature in the playing XI consistently. The pacer managed to pick up a solitary wicket from two matches at the continental tournament.