Mickey Arthur: “They are very good players, their games have developed in leaps and bounds over the last couple of years”

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Former Pakistan head coach Mickey Arthur believes that new Test captain Azhar Ali and veteran batsman Asad Shafiq will play key roles in the upcoming Test series against Australia.

Arthur noted that both players did well the last time Pakistan toured Australia, which was December 2016 to January 2017.

Azhar was Pakistan’s top run scorer in that series with 406 runs, which included a double century and two fifties, at an average of 81.20.

Shafiq, meanwhile, accumulated 239 runs in three games, which included a hundred and a half-century, at an average of 39.83.

“The two senior batsmen had very good tours last time. Azhar got a double (205 not out in Melbourne) and Asad (Shafiq) got a 140 [137] in Brisbane chasing,” Arthur told ESPNcricinfo. “They are very good players, their games have developed in leaps and bounds over the last couple of years, and I do think it’s a very solid top six now. I’m thinking of a top six along the lines of Imam-ul-Haq, Shan Masood – who played really well in South Africa – the experience of Azhar, who plays well off the back foot, then Babar Azam, followed by Haris Sohail and Shafiq.”