Mohammad Wasim: “We have seen Imad being more effective with the new ball and if he doesn’t bowl with the new ball then his middle overs bowling is an area he needs to work on”
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Pakistan chief selector Mohammad Wasim said spin-bowling all-rounder Imad Wasim needs to start becoming a better middle overs bowler.
Wasim noted that Imad has been getting “more effective with the new ball”, but if he is not needed to bowl at the start of the innings, then he will likely be used in the middle overs.
Since he isn’t as effective in the middle overs as he is with the new ball, Wasim said this is something the 32-year-old needs to improve going forward.
The chief selector’s advice comes after Imad was not picked for the tour of South Africa and Zimbabwe.
“We have seen Imad being more effective with the new ball and if he doesn’t bowl with the new ball then his middle overs bowling is an area he needs to work on,” Wasim told PakPassion.
“If he’s not needed with the new ball and if the captain prefers another fast bowler to get him some early breakthroughs as he wants wicket-taking options from both ends, then Imad needs to improve his bowling in the middle overs against all types of batsmen including left-handers.
“As a Twenty20 cricketer you need to be able to bat anywhere and bowl anytime in any conditions. At the moment I feel that Imad cannot do this and therefore he has his limitations. There are situations where he is useful, but he needs to improve on the areas which I have mentioned.”
Pakistan will play three ODIs and four T20 Internationals against South Africa before heading to Zimbabwe for two Tests and three T20 Internationals.
Pakistan departed for South Africa on March 26 and the tour will commence on April 2 and conclude on April 16. The ODI series will be played first.
The men in green will then head to Zimbabwe on April 17, but the dates for the matches have yet to be confirmed.
However, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) noted that the national team will travel back to Lahore from Bulawayo on May 12.
Pakistan’s Test Squad: Babar Azam (capt), Imran Butt, Abid Ali, Abdullah Shafique, Azhar Ali, Fawad Alam, Saud Shakeel, Agha Salman, Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Sarfaraz Ahmed, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, Tabish Khan, Hasan Ali, Shahnawaz Dhani, Nauman Ali, Zahid Mahmood, Sajid Khan.
Pakistan’s ODI Squad: Babar Azam (capt), Imam-ul-Haq, Fakhar Zaman, Abdullah Shafique, Haider Ali, Danish Aziz, Saud Shakeel, Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Usman Qadir, Hasan Ali.
Pakistan’s T20 Squad: Babar Azam (capt), Shadab Khan, Sharjeel Khan, Mohammad Hafeez, Haider Ali, Danish Aziz, Asif Ali, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Usman Qadir, Hasan Ali, Arshad Iqbal.