Mohammad Amir: “Abdullah and Saim have been given a fair chance by the cricket board, and now they need to step up because it’s very important for their careers”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Pakistan left-arm seamer Mohammad Amir has called on openers Saim Ayub and Abdullah Shafique to step up and perform regularly as they have both “been given a fair chance”.
Ayub has been sensational over the past few months as he has racked up three ODI centuries and a career-best knock of 98 not out in T20Is.
Shafique, meanwhile, had solid showings in the ODI series against Australia and Zimbabwe, but endured a torrid time in the three-match ODI series against South Africa as he made a duck in every match.
With both players seen as future stars for Pakistan, Amir admitted that it is vital they keep scoring runs as it will be “very important for their careers”.
“Abdullah and Saim have been given a fair chance by the cricket board, and now they need to step up because it’s very important for their careers,” he was quoted as saying by TOK Sports on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Both Ayub and Shafique were not picked for Pakistan’s two-Test series against the West Indies in Multan as the former was ruled out with a fractured ankle, while the latter was dropped due to his poor form.
Pakistan recently took on New Zealand and South Africa in an ODI tri-series, where they reached the final before losing to the Black Caps.
Their next assignment will be the 2025 Champions Trophy, which will be held from February 19 to March 9.
Pakistan Squad for 2025 Champions Trophy: Mohammad Rizwan (captain and wicketkeeper), Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Tayyab Tahir, Faheem Ashraf, Khushdil Shah, Salman Ali Agha, Usman Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Hasnain, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah