Salman Butt: “If you want to play international cricket, you have to be fit. With the kind of talent that he has, he can perform a lot better if he works on his fitness”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt has advised wicketkeeper-batsman Azam Khan to improve his fitness as it will have a positive impact on his overall performance.
Azam is one of the top up-and-coming big-hitters in Pakistan and has shown how destructive he can be in various T20 leagues around the world.
However, the 25-year-old has consistently been criticised for being overweight and Salman acknowledged that if he wants to have a successful international career, he needs to become fitter.
“If you want to play international cricket, you have to be fit. With the kind of talent that he has, he can perform a lot better if he works on his fitness,” he said on his YouTube channel as quoted by Cricket Pakistan.
Azam recently played for Pakistan in their five-match T20I series against New Zealand and scored 22 runs in three games at an average of 7.33 and a strike-rate of 115.78.
Currently, he is representing Islamabad United in the 2024 Pakistan Super League (PSL) and has made 14 runs in three matches at an average of seven and a strike-rate of 100.
Islamabad United Squad for PSL 9: Shadab Khan (captain), Naseem Shah, Jordan Cox, Imad Wasim, Azam Khan, Tymal Mills, Faheem Ashraf, Alex Hales, Colin Munro, Rumman Raees, Matthew Forde, Salman Ali Agha, Qasim Akram, Shahab Khan, Hunain Shah, Ubaid Shah, Shamyl Hussain, Obed McCoy, Haider Ali, Muhammad Waseem