Misbah-ul-Haq: “Now he is batting really well”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Misbah-ul-Haq, the former Pakistan head coach, said Azam Khan has been “batting really well” as of late.
The 24-year-old, who is the son of ex-Pakistan captain Moin Khan, stole the spotlight while playing for Islamabad United in the 2023 Pakistan Super League (PSL).
He showed off his power-hitting skills and his ability to be a potential middle order finisher as he amassed 282 runs in 10 matches, which included two fifties, at an average of 40.28 and a strike-rate of 161.14.
Given that Azam was inconsistent in the past, Misbah said it is refreshing to see him scoring big runs now.
“Now he is batting really well,” he was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.
Following the completion of PSL 8, Azam was selected for Pakistan’s T20I series against Afghanistan. However, he wasn’t able to maintain his form as he made scores of 0 and 1 in the two matches he played.
Currently, he has been playing for the Guyana Amazon Warriors in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) and scored 134 runs in 10 matches at an average of 14.88 and a strike-rate of 148.88.
The Pakistan team, meanwhile, defeated Sri Lanka 2-0 in a Test series and beat Afghanistan 3-0 in an ODI series.
Most recently, they featured in the Asia Cup, where they started with a 238-run win over Nepal before sharing one point apiece with India after rain ruined their match.
Having advanced to the Super Four stage, the men in green smashed Bangladesh by seven wickets.
Their unbeaten run was stopped in their next match against India, who crushed them by 228 runs.
Still in with a chance to make it to the Asia Cup final, Pakistan blew it as they lost to Sri Lanka by two wickets via the Duckworth–Lewis–Stern method (DLS) method.
Pakistan Squad for 2023 Asia Cup: Babar Azam (capt), Shadab Khan, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Fakhar Zaman, Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Saud Shakeel, Salman Ali Agha, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz, Usama Mir, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Haris (wk), Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Shahnawaz Dahani, Zaman Khan.
Travelling reserve:Â Tayyab Tahir