Azhar Mahmood: “When he is playing well, he is a wonderful striker of the cricket ball”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Azhar Mahmood, head coach of Islamabad United, said when Pakistan wicketkeeper-batsman Azam Khan in on fire, “he is a wonderful striker of the cricket ball”.
Mahmood got to see just how brutally effective Azam can be as the 24-year-old played for Islamabad United in the 2023 Pakistan Super League (PSL).
The powerful big-hitter amassed 282 runs in 10 matches, which included two half-centuries, at an average of 40.28 and a strike-rate of 161.14.
He subsequently got the chance to play for Pakistan in their three-match T20I series against Afghanistan, but failed to impress as he made scores of 0 and 1 in two games.
Nonetheless, Mahmood feels that the youngster is someone to keep an eye on, especially if Pakistan are in need of a power-hitter to invest in going forward.
“When he is playing well, he is a wonderful striker of the cricket ball,” he was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.
Pakistan will now face Sri Lanka in a two-Test series, which will be held in Galle and Colombo from July 16 to 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