Pakistan spinner Shadab Khan: “Individually, I need more improvement. But things are getting better because I hadn’t bowled long spells recently”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Pakistan spinner Shadab Khan has admitted that he still has a long way to go before he is bowling at his best.
Shadab, who struggled to take wickets in the lead-up to and during the 2024 T20 World Cup, admitted that things are moving in the right direction now that he is bowling longer spells.
The 26-year-old captained the Panthers in the Champions One-Day Cup, which was a domestic 50-over competition held in Faisalabad, and claimed five wickets in five matches at an average of 37.
He also scored 120 runs, which included a top score of 65, at an average of 40.
Following this, he led Ghani Glass in the President’s Cup Grade-I (1-Day) tournament and picked up four wickets in four games at an average of 55.75.
Batting-wise, he finished with 103 runs, which included a top score of 81, at an average of 34.33.
While the wickets are starting to come again for Shadab, he knows he can do a lot better.
“Individually, I need more improvement. But things are getting better because I hadn’t bowled long spells recently. I bowled longer spells this tournament, and that gave me more confidence. But there’s still plenty of time before I get to that level,” the Mianwali native was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.
Shadab was not picked for Pakistan’s two-Test series against Bangladesh, which they lost 2-0, and the three-Test series against England, which the men in green won 2-1.
He also wasn’t selected for the limited overs tour of Australia, where Pakistan won the ODI leg 2-1 but lost the T20Is 3-0.
As for the ongoing Zimbabwe tour, Shadab didn’t make the cut as well.
Pakistan won the ODI portion of the series 2-1 and currently hold a 2-0 lead in the T20I leg ahead of the third match, which will take place on December 5 in Bulawayo.
With Shadab not having been picked for any of Pakistan’s recent series, he has been featuring for Rawalpindi Region in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, where he has claimed 19 wickets in five matches, which includes a five-wicket haul, at an average of 27.05.
He has also had an impact with the bat, scoring 278 runs, which includes three fifties, at an average of 39.71.
Pakistan Squad for Zimbabwe ODI Series: Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Ahmed Daniyal, Faisal Akram, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah Khan (wicketkeeper), Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Rizwan (captain and wicketkeeper), Irfan Khan, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shahnawaz Dahani, Tayyab Tahir
Pakistan Squad for Zimbabwe T20I Series: Ahmed Daniyal, Arafat Minhas, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah Khan (wicketkeeper), Jahandad Khan, Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Hasnain, Irfan Khan, Omair bin Yousuf, Qasim Akram, Sahibzada Farhan, Salman Ali Agha, Sufiyan Muqeem, Tayyab Tahir, Usman Khan