Akmal vs Siddique Sparks Heated Family Spat
A family feud within Pakistan cricket has gone public, as former wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal has hit back at Babar Azam’s father, Azam Siddique, over a pointed social media post. The controversy started after Akmal backed Babar Azam’s exclusion from Pakistan’s T20I squad, and now the two are engaged in a war of words online.
Kamran Akmal Slams Babar Azam’s T20I Performance
On the ARY Podcast, Kamran Akmal spoke about Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan. He said both top-order batsmen should now only be considered for Test cricket as they are not performing well in T20Is.
- “In my opinion, they should now be kept only for Test matches. Maybe after another six months, they should be considered only for Test cricket,” he said.
This comes as Pakistan’s T20 strategy is being criticized and the team is not performing well in international matches.
Azam Siddique Hits Back at Kamran Akmal
Babar Azam’s father, Azam Siddique, responded to Akmal’s criticism by sharing a throwback photo of a young Babar and Kamran Akmal, hinting at a match where Akmal scored a duck under Babar’s captaincy while Babar scored a century.
In the caption, Babar Azam Father wrote:
“This child (Babar) never played under your captaincy, but you did play under his captaincy and got out for zero while he scored a century that day. Talking behind the backs of successful people is a compulsion of those who have failed.”
The post went viral on social media and was seen as a personal attack on Kamran Akmal, and he responded.
Kamran Akmal Tells Azam Siddique to ‘Stay Within Limits’
Kamran Akmal posted a strongly worded Instagram Story and told Azam Siddique to stop spreading “false narratives” and respect personal boundaries.
Silence is not an option every time, especially when false narratives are being spread. Please think twice before speaking or posting about me without facts
He said his views on Babar and Rizwan were based on cricket and not personal.
Next time, please be more careful with your words. There are clear boundaries, and you have crossed them more than once. Stay within your limits
He said cricket criticism should be merit based and not personal.
Conclusion
Cricketing critique turns personal. What started as a performance-based critique has turned into a public family feud. How deep is the emotion in Pakistan cricket? As fans are reacting on social media, one thing is clear — personal attacks and online jibes only take us away from the real issues facing Pakistan cricket: consistency, leadership, and team balance
