Awais Zia: “I made up my mind to hit Steve Finn for a six on the first ball”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Pakistan opening batsman Awais Zia has revealed that he made up his mind to try and hit former England fast bowler Steven Finn for a six on the first ball in his T20I debut.
Awais represented his country in five T20Is and even though he didn’t hit Finn for a six right away in his debut match in February 2012, he still took the attack to Finn.
It was the fifth ball he faced from Finn that the 38-year-old eventually did what he said he would – hit a six.
Recalling that match in Dubai, which Pakistan won by eight runs, Awais noted that he always planned to play aggressive cricket and specifically had his sights set on Finn as he was informed how fast the 35-year-old bowled.
“I made up my mind to hit Steve Finn for a six on the first ball,” he told PakPassion.
The Pakistan team were recently involved in an ODI tri-series against New Zealand and South Africa, where they made it to the final before losing to the Black Caps.
They are now featuring in the 2025 Champions Trophy, but got off to a disappointing start as they lost their opening game to New Zealand by 60 runs.
Pakistan’s next match will be against India on February 23 in Dubai.
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