Talent is supposed to be the indicator of merit in the field of play. But sometimes nepotism also becomes the criterion of eligibility. For some, intimacy becomes a curse. People also take advantage of merit as a result of nepotism. Pakistan leg-spinner Usman Qadir considers himself a victim of the curse. His father is the legendary leg-spinner, Abdul Qadir. It was at his hands that the dying art of leg spin got a new lease of life. Abdul Qadir’s close friend is Pakistan’s World Cup-winning captain and former Prime Minister Imran Khan. Babar Azam, the current captain of the Pakistan national team, is his childhood friend. So it is natural to have whispered about Usman Qadir getting a chance in the Pakistan national team. In 2020, when Imran Khan was the Prime Minister of Pakistan, Usman got his first chance in the Pakistan national team. Instantly, whispers began that the Prime Minister’s friend’s son needed no domestic cricket performance or lobbying to get a stake in the national team. Usman got another chance in the Pakistan team. Now it is being said that Babar gave the 29-year-old leg-spinner an option in the national team based on childhood friends and long-distance relationships. Uthman’s sister was married to Umar Akmal, Babur’s cousin.

However, Usman refused to accept allegations of nepotism or favoritism for getting a chance in the Pakistan team. Rather, he is counter-complaining that he is not being given enough opportunities. He also said that he can leave the game for that reason. According to a news report of Cricket Pakistan, Usman recently expressed his regret on a local channel Pakistan about the accusation that he got a chance in the national team due to nepotism. Usman said, ‘Shining does not make gold. The inside is not always what we see from the outside. I never protested to Babar and said, take me to the party. He is representing Pakistan as captain. All the weight of the team is on him. The whole country looks up to him. He has to make many difficult decisions. It is challenging work.’Usman said that it was not Babar’s choice but the then selector Misbah-ul-Haq’s who called him to the team for the first time. He said, ‘People often think that I get a chance to have a good relationship with Babar. But I want to tell everyone, I did not come to the Pakistan team for Babar. In 2019, the then-selector Misbah-ul-Haq called me to the team. Reminiscing about the relationships that represent the team, Usman said, ‘People should understand that one cannot show power at will when he is the captain. You must refrain from taking your favorite player into the team. Babar is my childhood friend, but that is off the field. There is no such thing as a predictable game time. Such (nepotism) allegations send wrong messages to people. It is not very good to accuse someone of being given a place in the national team because of friendship and not talent.’Misbah-ul-Haq called Usman to the Pakistan team in 2019, but Usman had to wait another year to play a match. Usman has taken 30 wickets by playing 23 T20Is and 1 ODI in Pakistan’s jersey so far.

However, the 29-year-old leg-spinner claimed that he was not given enough opportunities. He feels that he could have contributed more if given regular opportunities. In his words, ‘I was not given regular opportunities. One or two matches have been played. I do not expect to get a chance on the team. I don’t even know if I will continue playing.’