Abdullah Shafique: “We expect to see him scoring runs”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Pakistan opener Abdullah Shafique said everyone expects frontline batsman Babar Azam to score runs all the time.
Azam has failed to do that lately as his form and consistency have both nosedived, which has been a major headache for the men in green.
In the recent three-match Test series against Australia, which Pakistan lost 3-0, the 29-year-old only managed to score 126 runs at an average of 21.
Shafique acknowledged that the Lahore native has to meet very high standards, but backed him to shake off his rough patch in the near future.
“We expect to see him scoring runs,” he was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.
Azam just finished playing in the five-match T20I series against New Zealand and accumulated 213 runs, which included three fifties, at an average of 42.60 and a strike-rate of 142.
Despite his efforts, Pakistan lost the series 4-1.
Azam’s next assignment will be the 2024 Pakistan Super League (PSL), where he will captain the Peshawar Zalmi.
As for Shafique, he will represent the Lahore Qalandars.
PSL 9 will take place from February 17 to March 18 in four cities – Lahore, Multan, Karachi and Rawalpindi.
Peshawar Zalmi Squad for PSL 9: Babar Azam (captain), Rovman Powell, Saim Ayub, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Mohammad Haris, Aamer Jamal, Khurram Shahzad, Haseebullah Khan, Asif Ali, Naveen-ul-Haq, Umair Afridi, Dan Mousley, Mohammad Zeeshan, Lungi Ngidi, Mehran Mumtaz, Noor Ahmad, Salman Irshad, Arif Yaqoob
Lahore Qalandars Squad for PSL 9: Shaheen Shah Afridi (captain), Haris Rauf, David Wiese, Sikandar Raza, Abdullah Shafique, Zaman Khan, Mirza Tahir Baig, Rashid Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Sahibzada Farhan, Mohammad Imran Jnr, Ahsan Bhatti, Dan Lawrence, Jahandad Khan, Syed Faridoun Mahmood, Shai Hope, Kamran Ghulam, Rassie van der Dussen