Aaqib Javed: “He perfectly fits at the No.4 spot. Tell me is there anyone apart from him?”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Lahore Qalandars head coach Aaqib Javed firmly believes that all-rounder Shoaib Malik is the best person to bat at number four in T20 Internationals.
Malik has plenty of experience playing international cricket and has a lot of firepower as well. In addition to this, he is a handy bowler who can keep things tight and take wickets.
The 40-year-old was in solid form in the recent National T20 Cup as he scored 204 runs in nine matches for Central Punjab, which included two half-centuries, at an average of 29.14 and a strike-rate of 140.68.
He also took two wickets at an average of 43.
With Malik still performing in domestic cricket, Aaqib asked if there is anyone better suited to bat at number four than the veteran.
“He perfectly fits at the No.4 spot. Tell me is there anyone apart from him?” he told pak.tv as quoted by Cricket Pakistan.
The men in green just finished facing New Zealand and Bangladesh in a T20 tri-series, which they won after beating the Black Caps by five wickets in the final.
They will now travel to Australia for the 2022 T20 World Cup and kickstart their campaign on October 23 when they go up against India in Melbourne.
Pakistan’s 2022 T20 World Cup squad: Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-captain), Asif Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Shan Masood
Reserves: Mohammad Haris, Shahnawaz Dahani and Usman Qadir