Mohammad Yousuf: “He is mentally not present in the moment – I could be wrong, but this is what I assume”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Mohammad Yousuf admitted he feels as if Pakistan batsman Haider Ali was mentally zoned out at times.
He made it clear that this is what he assumed and “could be wrong”.
Haider is a power-hitter with lots of talent but he has failed to consistently shine at the international level despite starting off so strong.
From what he has witnessed, Yousuf advised the 22-year-old to be more focused as it will help him turn his fortunes around.
“He is mentally not present in the moment – I could be wrong, but this is what I assume,” the former national team batting coach told Cricket Pakistan.
“You have to be in the present moment whilst leaving the past behind and the future aside. This is important for all players of any kind, of any format.”
Haider is now playing county cricket for Derbyshire and has scored 312 runs in seven County Championship matches, which includes a century and two fifties, at an average of 28.36.
He has also featured in the Vitality Blast, where he has amassed 335 runs in 14 games, which includes two half-centuries, at an average of 25.76 and a strike-rate of 137.86.
Haider has not been selected for Pakistan’s upcoming two-Test series against Sri Lanka, which will take place in Galle and Colombo from July 16 t0 28.
Pakistan Squad for Sri Lanka Test Series:Â Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (vc & wk), Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Muhammad Huraira, Mohammad Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Noman Ali, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Saud Shakeel, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Shan Masood