Ravi Shastri: “Abdullah is a solid opener. He has [the] temperament and technique needed for an opener”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Former India head coach Ravi Shastri believes Pakistan batsman Abdullah Shafique has the “temperament and technique needed for an opener.”
The 24-year-old has shown that he can score runs at the highest level and on the biggest stage as he was one of Pakistan’s top performers in the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup.
Shafique was initially a back-up option going into the tournament, but replaced Fakhar Zaman after the opening game against the Netherlands and stamped his authority in his first game against Sri Lanka by scoring a career-best 113.
Overall, the Sialkot native finished with 336 runs in eight matches, which included a century and three fifties, at an average of 42.
Shastri was very impressed with what he saw from Shafique and reckons Pakistan should keep backing him.
“Abdullah is a solid opener. He has [the] temperament and technique needed for an opener,” he was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.
Pakistan won their first two games against the Netherlands and Sri Lanka before losing four in a row to India, Australia, Afghanistan and South Africa.
Despite bouncing back to beat Bangladesh and New Zealand, it was not enough to earn them a spot in the semi-finals.
The men in green concluded their campaign on a low as England smashed them by 93 runs.
Shafique will now feature in Pakistan’s upcoming three-match Test series against Australia, which will get underway on December 14 in Perth.
Pakistan Squad for Australia Test Series:Â Shan Masood (captain), Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Noman Ali, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Saud Shakeel and Shaheen Shah Afridi