Azam Khan: “Two of our players, Andre Russell and Faf du Plessis got injured which affected our team combination. When you lose two legendary players like those, things get difficult and the morale of team goes down”
Image courtesy of: Pakistan Super League
Pakistan wicketkeeper-batsman Azam Khan has called South Africa batsman Faf du Plessis and West Indies big-hitter Andre Russell “legendary players”.
His comments came when he was reflecting on the Quetta Gladiators’ disappointing Pakistan Super League (PSL) campaign, where they only won two of their 10 games.
Du Plessis and Russell were both playing for the franchise, but were ruled out of the tournament midway through with concussions.
Du Plessis scored 76 runs in five matches at an average of 19 and a strike-rate of 122.58.
As for Russell, he made 13 in the one game he played.
“Two of our players, Andre Russell and Faf du Plessis got injured which affected our team combination,” Azam told Cricket Pakistan.
“When you lose two legendary players like those, things get difficult and the morale of team goes down. Having said that, I think good and bad days are part and parcel of the game.
“We have been champions in the past and also played two finals. Hopefully, in the future, good times will return.”
It should be noted that Azam, who is the son of former captain and wicketkeeper-batsman Moin Khan, recently earned his maiden call-up to the national team for the upcoming tours of England and the West Indies.
The youngster was selected after turning heads with his performances in domestic cricket.
In the Pakistan Cup, the 22-year-old accumulated 186 runs in seven games for Sindh, which included a top score of 69, at an average of 46.50 and a strike-rate of 124.83.
As for the PSL, he scored 174 runs in 10 matches for the Gladiators, which included a top score of 47, at an average of 17.40 and a strike-rate of 133.84.
Pakistan will play three ODIs and three T20 Internationals against England. The ODI series will begin on July 8 and conclude on July 13, while the T20 series will be held from July 16 to 20.
The tour of the West Indies will consist of five T20 Internationals and two Tests, with the T20 series getting underway on July 27 and ending on August 3.
As for the Test series, it will start on August 12 and conclude on August 24.
Pakistan Test Squad: Babar Azam (captain), Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper) (vice-captain), Abdullah Shafique, Abid Ali, Azhar Ali, Faheem Ashraf, Fawad Alam, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Imran Butt, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Nauman Ali, Sajid Khan, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Saud Shakeel, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shahnawaz Dhani, Yasir Shah (subject to fitness) and Zahid Mahmood
Pakistan ODI Squad: Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-captain), Abdullah Shafique, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Sohaib Maqsood, Haris Rauf, Haris Sohail, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Agha Salman, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Saud Shakeel, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Usman Qadir
Pakistan T20 Squad: Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-captain), Arshad Iqbal, Azam Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Sohaib Maqsood, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sharjeel Khan and Usman Qadir