Simon Katich: “He’s a good young player, he’s had a good start to his Test career. What I like about him the most is that he’s aggressive against spin”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Former Australia opener Simon Katich has high hopes for Pakistan batsman Abdullah Shafique, describing him as a “good young player.”
Katich noted that what stands out about the 24-year-old is his aggression when facing spin bowling.
His comments come after the Sialkot native has enjoyed a great start to his Test career, which has led to him cementing his place as one of Pakistan’s go-to openers.
“He’s a good young player, he’s had a good start to his Test career. What I like about him the most is that he’s aggressive against spin,” Katich was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.
In the recent three-match Test series against Australia, Shafique wasn’t at his usual best as he scored 110 runs, which included a top score of 62, at an average of 18.33.
Pakistan lost that series 3-0 and are now taking on New Zealand in a five-match T20I series, where they trail 2-0 after losing the first match by 46 runs and the second game by 21 runs.
The third T20I will be played on January 17 in Dunedin.
Pakistan Squad for New Zealand T20I Series: Shaheen Shah Afridi (captain), Aamer Jamal, Abbas Afridi, Azam Khan (wicketkeeper), Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah Khan (wicketkeeper), Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Usama Mir and Zaman Khan