Wasim Akram: “What a knock from Sarfaraz Ahmed and that too under pressure in [the] fourth innings. We are all super proud of you”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Legendary left-arm seamer Wasim Akram said everyone is “super proud” of wicketkeeper-batsman Sarfaraz Ahmed for his lion-hearted batting effort in the two-Test series against New Zealand.
Replacing regular wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammad Rizwan in the starting line-up, Sarfaraz dominated with the bat as he marked his Test comeback with 335 runs, which included a century and three fifties, at an average of 83.75.
Wasim praised the 35-year-old for staying calm under pressure throughout the series and for his brilliant century in the second Test.
“What a knock from Sarfaraz Ahmed and that too under pressure in [the] fourth innings. We are all super proud of you,” the Sultan of Swing said on Twitter.
Most recently, Sarfaraz captained the Quetta Gladiators in the Pakistan Super League (PSL), where he amassed 162 runs in eight games at an average of 27 and a strike-rate of 104.51.
Pakistan will now take on Afghanistan in three T20Is, but Sarfaraz was selected in the team for the series, which will be played from March 25 to 28 in Sharjah.
Pakistan squad for T20I series against Afghanistan: Shadab Khan (capt), Abdullah Shafique, Azam Khan (wk), Faheem Ashraf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Ihsanullah, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Haris (wk), Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Shan Masood, Tayyab Tahir, Zaman Khan
Reserve players: Abrar Ahmed, Haseebullah, Usama Mir