Pakistan batsman Imam-ul-Haq, the nephew of ex-cricketer Inzamam-ul-Haq, talked about the nepotism accusations on him. Currently, the discussion on nepotism is heated up and Imam opened up about the allegations he had to face early in his career. 

Imam, who made his debut in 2017 against Sri Lanka, was shocked to see the hatred against him and he would often cry in the shower for hours.

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Talking to Deep Dasgupta on ESPNCricinfo, the Pakistan cricketers said, “When all of this started happening, I would have my meals all alone. It was my first tour and you know how it can get on the first tour. And whenever I would open my phone, there were people tagging me on social media posts or sending me stuff. I was very disheartened and couldn’t understand anything."

Imam had started to create self doubt and he was not sure about his career too. But despite a tough phase, the youngster got included in Pakistan's initial 14-man team by the then coach Mickey Arthur.

“I remember crying in the shower for hours that I haven’t even played yet [he played the third ODI of the series in Abu Dhabi]. It’s very easy for young players to get surrounded by self-doubt. The only thing running constantly in my mind was that I haven’t even played [for the national team] yet, what if I play and don’t perform well?

"Then my career will be over. I wouldn’t step a foot out of my room, fearing people might trouble me outside because there is a large Pakistan community in Dubai,” he further said.

“So I didn’t play the first two matches of the series, Ahmed Shehzad played in them but he couldn’t perform [well]. In the team meeting after the second match, Mickey Arthur announced a 14-strong team for the next match, and I was included in that. And he said that you will be informed if you will be playing the night before [the match],” he added.