Shadab Khan: “We have no doubts about him”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Pakistan spinner Shadab Khan has made it clear that the team don’t have any doubts about opening batsman Fakhar Zaman.
Zaman’s form has been a major area of concern for quite some time as his job is to set a solid platform for the other batsmen to build on.
However, since he has not been scoring enough runs, there have been questions raised about whether he will keep hold of his spot in the side much longer.
All the speculation grew further when Zaman was dropped after Pakistan’s opening match against the Netherlands in the ongoing 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup.
He missed the next five games before being brought back in place of fellow opener Imam-ul-Haq, who has also been inconsistent, for the clash against Bangladesh.
In that match, Zaman may have bought himself more time in the national team as he walloped 81 runs off 74 balls, which included three boundaries and seven sixes.
He followed that up with an even more impressive 126 not out against New Zealand, which came off 81 deliveries and included eight boundaries and 11 sixes.
Given that performance, Shadab reiterated that the Pakistan team stands fully behind the 33-year-old.
“We have no doubts about him,” he was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.
Pakistan began their World Cup campaign with wins over the Netherlands and Sri Lanka before falling to India, Australia, Afghanistan and South Africa.
They ended their four-game losing streak with back-to-back wins over Bangladesh and New Zealand, which kept them in the hunt to reach the World Cup semi-finals.
Pakistan will now look to secure their third straight victory when they face England on November 11 in Kolkata.
Pakistan Squad for 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup: Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Abdullah Shafique, Babar Azam (capt), Mohammad Rizwan, Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Salman Ali Agha, Shadab Khan, Usama Mir, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Hasan Ali
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