'Don't have Lionel Messi on the bench': Ramiz Raja defends Pakistan's T20 squad selection in a unique way

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief Ramiz Raja defended Pakistan's team selected for the upcoming T20 World Cup saying that the selection was made after several considerations.

Talks of bringing a veteran player like Shoaib Malik back into the team have been doing the rounds for a while now and Raja had a unique take on the matte. "We don't have Lionel Messi sitting on our bench and it is not like we have selected really bad players. We have limited options," Ramiz said on the Pakistani channel.

Pakistan's middle order has been a concern for quite some time now which puts all the pressure on the opening duo of Babar Azam and Mohammed Rizwan.

“We have experimented with the senior players in the last T20 World Cup. I dont’ have any issue. But my philosophy in cricket is- We need consistency in selection and second we need to strengthen the skipper. We have limited options," added Ramiz.

However, Raja is optimistic of his team's performance at the upcoming T20 world cup. Pakistan open its campaign against India on October 23.

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