Sarfaraz Ahmed: “You can’t praise him enough”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Sarfaraz Ahmed said he can’t praise Pakistan wicketkeeper-batsman Azam Khan enough as the 24-year-old has overcome so much criticism over the last couple of years.
Azam, who is the son of former Pakistan captain Moin Khan, has been chastised for being overweight on numerous occasions. This prompted him to work on his fitness and lose a lot of weight.
The 24-year-old has also cemented his reputation as a top-notch power-hitter as he was brutally effective for Islamabad United in the 2023 Pakistan Super League (PSL).
Azam featured in 10 games and accumulated 282 runs, which included two fifties, at an average of 40.28 and a strike-rate of 161.14.
Given what he has been through and how much success he has enjoyed lately, Sarfaraz said he deserves all the applause and accolades coming his way.
“You can’t praise him enough,” the 36-year-old was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.
Following his brilliant PSL 8 campaign, Azam got the opportunity to represent Pakistan in their three-match T20I series against Afghanistan.
He made scores of 0 and 1 in the two matches he played.
Azam recently played for the Mississauga Panthers in the Global T20 Canada, where he accumulated 179 runs in six matches, which included two fifties, at an average of 29.83 and a strike-rate of 135.60.
He is now representing the Guyana Amazon Warriors in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL).
As for the Pakistan team, they recently defeated Sri Lanka 2-0 in a Test series and will now take on Afghanistan in a three-match ODI series, which will take place in Sri Lanka from August 22 to 26.
Following this, the men in green will play in the Asia Cup, which will be jointly hosted by Pakistan and Sri Lanka from August 30 to September 17.
Pakistan Squad for Afghanistan ODI Series and 2023 Asia Cup:Â Babar Azam (capt), Shadab Khan, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Fakhar Zaman, Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Saud Shakeel (Afghanistan series only), Salman Ali Agha, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz, Usama Mir, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Tayyab Tahir, Mohammad Haris (wk), Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Wasim Jnr