KARACHI: Discarded Pakistan batsman Faisal Iqbal on Tuesday expressed his frustration over the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) decision to overlook him for a series of three practice Twenty20 matches in Lahore starting from Wednesday (today).

The PCB on Monday named two teams for the warm-up games designed to help Pakistan's 15-man squad to prepare for next month's World Twenty20 Championship in England.

Faisal told 'The News' that was expecting a call for the practice games but was left highly disappointed after the Board ignored him for the May 20-22 series in spite of the fact that he was part of a 30-man provisional squad for the June 5-21 spectacle to be staged in London and Nottingham.

"I was left heartbroken after getting overlooked for the practice matches because they would have served as a good platform for me to prove my batting form," he said.

"I believe that being part of the preliminary squad for the Twenty20 World Cup, I deserve a chance to at least play the practice matches," he added.

He said that most of the players selected to play for the Patron's XI and the Chairman's XI - the two teams announced for the practice games - are from the list of cricketers, who made the cut for Pakistan's preliminary Twenty20 squad.

Faisal, 27, has just played 18 One-day Internationals since making his ODI debut in 2000 against Sri Lanka in Lahore. In spite of being regarded as a talented middle-order batsman, Faisal's Test career is also surprisingly lean, having played just 23 Tests, scoring 954 runs at 26.50 with one century and seven fifties.

The Karachi-based player is yet to make his Twenty20 International debut as he is not seen as a batsman fit for the slam-bang format of the game.

Faisal, a nephew of Javed Mianded - Pakistan's most prolific Test batsman - is unhappy over the fact that national selectors brand him as a player, who is not suited to Twenty20 cricket.

"I don't know why people have branded me as a player who is not good enough for Twenty20 cricket," he lamented. "I mean they haven't even tried me once to see whether I'm good or bad," added Faisal.

As a player who has signed a central contract with the PCB, Faisal might land himself in trouble with the authorities over his outburst.

However, he believes it's better to vent out his frustration rather than allowing it to affect his performance.

"I know, I am a contracted player and we are not allowed to speak out against anything," he said. "But I can't take it any longer. I mean by not giving me any opportunities, they are just giving me the message that I'm finished. It's really very disappointing."