Wasim Akram urges India to visit Pakistan for ICC Champions Trophy

The veteran star pacer and former captain of Pakistan men's cricket team, Waseem Akram, has hinted at the potential arrival of the Men in Blue to Pakistan to play during the ICC Champions Trophy, stating that good signals are being received from India.

The former bowler, popularly known as the Sultan of Swing, said that the Pakistan Cricket Board had made several offers to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to ensure their team's smooth visit to this side of the border to participate in the global tournament.

"India should come to Pakistan," said Akram, during an online press conference in Melbourne on Wednesday.

He added that Indian cricketers such as Virat Kohli, Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav have a lot of fans in Pakistan, who are eagerly awaiting their arrival.

People of both countries, he said, should be in contact with each other and that India should think about it, recalling that he has not been to the other side of the border for the last six to seven years.

"I miss the food and people there."

Akram urged Indian players to come to Pakistan, claiming that they will enjoy it here.

Commenting on Pakistan's upcoming series with Australia, the former pacer said that the conditions in Australia are tough and the series won't be easy.

Winning even one ODI is a huge achievement, while the T20 series will be good, he said.

Speaking about the recent fiasco around Fakhra Zaman, Akram said he is an impact player, but added that the PCB was bound to be upset over the issue that unfolded following his post on social media following Babar Azam's departure from the Test squad during the recently concluded Test series against England.

Zaman had slammed team selectors for dropping Babar in a controversial post on X after which he was sent a show-cause notice and was also recently excluded from the board's central contract.

I am sure that the social media statement was not written by Fakhar. Whoever wrote it should have told him about its repercussions on his central contract, he said.

"This is a lesson for Fakhar Zaman, one should write thoughtfully on social media," he said.

Commenting on Muhammad Rizwan's role as a white-ball captain in upcoming Australia and Zimbabwe tours, the veteran cricketer said that the wicketkeeper-batter has the experience of captaincy and is a good choice, but should just focus on the game.

He advised Shaheen Afridi and Naseem Shah to focus on the game and leave social media aside, while also urging Babar to forget captaincy and scoring runs playing play cricket.