Salman Butt: “Yes, he (Aaqib Javed) talked about Fakhar Zaman. We all know about his knee injury, but I think with age, Fakhar needs to work on his strength”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt has advised big-hitting batsman Fakhar Zaman to work on his strength.
He noted that Zaman should focus on strength training in order to improve his general fitness and ensure he doesn’t get injured more often as he gets older.
Salman’s comments come after Pakistan limited overs head coach Aaqib Javed talked about Zaman, saying the 34-year-old needs to improve his fitness in order to be eligible for selection.
“Yes, he (Aaqib Javed) talked about Fakhar Zaman. We all know about his knee injury, but I think with age, Fakhar needs to work on his strength. I’m telling you, every single one of our players needs to do strength training to stay fit as they grow older,” Salman was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.
“Whether it’s Fakhar or any other player, the way things are going now, they need strength training. It’s as simple as that. Just running isn’t going to achieve anything.”
Zaman was not picked for Pakistan’s recent limited overs series against Australia and Zimbabwe.
Many suspect it was due to his criticism over the decision to drop batsman Babar Azam midway through Pakistan’s three-Test series against England in October 2024.
Pakistan are now taking on South Africa, but Zaman was once again overlooked.
The men in green lost the T20I series 2-0, but now hold a 2-0 lead in the ODI series heading into the third match on December 22 in Johannesburg.
After the ODI series finishes, Pakistan and South Africa will play two Tests, with the first match getting underway on December 26 in Centurion.
Pakistan Squad for South Africa T20I Series: Mohammad Rizwan (captain and wicketkeeper), Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Haris Rauf, Jahandad Khan, Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Hasnain, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Omair Bin Yousuf, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sufiyan Muqeem, Tayyab Tahir and Usman Khan (wicketkeeper)
Pakistan Squad for South Africa ODI Series: Mohammad Rizwan (captain and wicketkeeper), Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Haris Rauf, Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Hasnain, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sufiyan Muqeem, Tayyab Tahir and Usman Khan (wicketkeeper)
Pakistan Squad for South Africa Test Series: Shan Masood (captain), Saud Shakeel (vice-captain), Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Babar Azam, Haseebullah Khan (wicketkeeper), Kamran Ghulam, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Naseem Shah, Noman Ali, Saim Ayub and Salman Ali Agha
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