Ramiz Raja: “Saud Shakeel was off to a good start in Test cricket, but he is having great trouble against the fast bowlers. We have seen the struggle of Shakeel in Australia and here in Pakistan against the fast bowlers”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Former Pakistan captain Ramiz Raja has identified a weakness in middle order batsman Saud Shakeel, saying he has “great trouble” when facing pace bowlers.
Shakeel has become one of Pakistan’s most reliable run-scorers and has brought stability to the middle order, which used to be a longstanding problem for the men in green.
In order for the 29-year-old to continue being effective, Ramiz has advised him to eliminate the issues he has against fast bowling.
“Saud Shakeel was off to a good start in Test cricket, but he is having great trouble against the fast bowlers. We have seen the struggle of Shakeel in Australia and here in Pakistan against the fast bowlers,” he was quoted as saying by Samaa TV.
Shakeel recently featured in Pakistan’s two-Test series against Bangladesh and amassed 159 runs, which included a top score of 141, at an average of 39.75.
The Karachi native is now playing for the Dolphins in the Champions One-Day Cup, which is a domestic 50-over tournament going on in Faisalabad, and has made 77 runs in three games at an average of 25.66.
Pakistan’s next assignment will be a three-match Test series against England from October 7 to 28.
Pakistan Squad for Bangladesh Test Series: Shan Masood (captain), Saud Shakeel (vice-captain), Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Kamran Ghulam, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Ali, Muhammad Hurraira, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wicketkeeper), Shaheen Shah Afridi