SAMI & AZHAR SHOWED PLENTY OF GRITTY FIGHT
This series continues to grip cricket lovers. Just when it looks like one team might run away with it, as many thought England might after the win at Old Trafford, the other comes roaring back and puts the other on the defensive.
I wrote last week at how I wanted a right-armer into the Pakistan attack and it paid off on the first day at Edgbaston, with Sohail Khan picking up five wickets in just his third Test, and his first since 2011.
He is a very hard-working bowler and he showed his talent in last year’s World Cup when he took 5-55 against India. He runs in hard and is very tough mentally. To have spent so long out of the Test side and then go and produce a performance like that is incredible. He has had issues with his physical fitness and used to do a lot of weight training, but he has changed that and is showing potential.
He has gone through a tough period in the last couple of years, but he deserved his chance. It was something different for the England batsmen to face, and he utilised the conditions really well. He bowled in the channels, where batsmen are unsure what to play and what to leave, and got his just rewards.
Sami Aslam has also been brought into the team, and he is a player who the PCB have invested a lot in. He has come through the system and played all the age-group cricket. I saw him in the nets when I was in England for the second Test. I have heard he is a bit flashy, but he reined himself in yesterday, just like an international opener should.
He likes to pull and cut, which isn’t the worst thing in England where bounce tends to be consistent, but he was very careful with what he played and what he defended (or left). It is a big ask to come in midway through a series, but Shan Masood did fail in the first two matches so Sami has a lot of responsibility.
He is being touted as the future of Pakistan though and it’s clear to see he has talent, reaching his first Test half-century. He is facing one of the best, if not the best, bowling attack in the world and it’s a completely different prospect to facing them in the Sub-continent, but he did well and frustrated England.
One player who did not frustrate England though was his opening partner Mohammed Hafeez. That was a poor dismissal and he needs to remember that you’re always learning.
Hafeez had played just one Test in England before this series, scoring 95 at the Oval in 2006, and I’m sure he would have benefitted from spending more time in England.
The PCB always support the players to go and play their cricket outside of Pakistan, whether that be in county cricket or the Big Bash. The pundits and experts here want the players to go to OURSTAR COLUMNIST FOR THIS SUMMER’S BIG SERIES England to play in the County Championship.
If you play the longer form in England you can develop your technique. There’s so much to learn by playing in the UK and if you can nail your technique there, then you can thrive anywhere.
When I started playing for Surrey, I grew mentally as well as physically. It teaches you so much with all the different surfaces and playing day in, day out. That’s huge because it gives you so much more opportunity to hone your skills and cash in when you really are in form.
Playing with the different pros helps as well. That’s what’s brilliant about the current T20 competitions with all the big stars from across the world; you learn from all the different nationalities and everyone has something different to offer when it comes to advice.
That’s the thing; no matter what stage of your career you are at, you learn every day. I remember I was once travelling with the spiritual teacher of myself and Inzi, whose name I can’t remember, and I had his passport with me.
In Pakistan, the passport also has your profession as well as name and date of birth. This man was almost 90 years old, but in his profession box he had the word ‘Student’. I said to him ‘You’re our teacher, but you have student on your passport.What is that about?’
He explained that we are always students in this world and we never stop learning.You learn from everyone. If you see kids playing, they’re playing together, no matter what. There’s no diversity with children. That’s the same on the cricket field. Just by watching one player, or one team, you can pick up different things that you can learn from. There is no greater way to learn than by watching and speaking to people.
A Pakistan tour to England is always special because you know you will learn a lot through your experiences. Yes, Pakistan players dream of playing India regularly, but going to England is always seen as a true test of your ability.
When I used to come to England, we would prepare really well, but you knew you had to practise different skills compared to those you would use at home.You have to be technically strong in England, as a batsman and as a bowler. As a spin bowler, you have to have so many different ideas because batsmen play in different areas and the pitches are all so varied. Some will spin, some won’t, but you need to have a clear plan no matter where you play.
Pakistan fans love watching English cricket too. After the first Test, cricket was all that was talked about here in Pakistan. The boot camp and preparation seemed to have worked wonders. That died down after the defeat in the second Test with the Pakistan public’s view changing. The bowling attack was being blamed, so were the openers and everything was being criticised.
This country just loves its cricket...
Sami is being treated as the future of Pakistan and it’s clear to see he has talent, reaching his first half-century against such a great bowling attack