Mohammad Rizwan: “Look, we all know how well Saim Ayub performed recently. His performances were exceptional, especially given the conditions and the opposition”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Pakistan ODI captain Mohammad Rizwan has praised opening batsman Saim Ayub for his batting as of late, saying his “performances were exceptional”.
Ayub had been on fire with the bat over the past few months before suffering a fractured ankle.
The 22-year-old started heating up during Pakistan’s tour of Australia, where he struck 125 runs in three ODIs, which included a top score of 82, at an average of 41.66.
He did even better in the three-match ODI series against Zimbabwe, scoring 155 runs, which included a career-best 113 not out, at an average of 77.50.
Ayub followed it up with 60 runs in two T20Is at an average of 60.
Pakistan then embarked on a tour of South Africa and the Karachi native kicked things off with 129 runs in two T20Is, which included a career-best knock of 98 not out, at an average of 129.
He didn’t slow down at all in the ODI series, amassing 235 runs in three matches, which included two hundreds, at an average of 78.33.
As for the two-Test series, Ayub finished with 41 runs at an average of 20.50. However, it should be noted that he didn’t bat in the 2nd Test in Cape Town due to the ankle injury he sustained.
Due to his injury, Ayub was ruled out of the two-Test series against the West Indies, ODI tri-series against New Zealand and South Africa, and the 2025 Champions Trophy.
“Look, we all know how well Saim Ayub performed recently. His performances were exceptional, especially given the conditions and the opposition. Anyway, his absence has disturbed the combination, but we must focus on the process, not the names. Yes, his absence is a loss for us, but the team’s planning remains the same, and we will not use this as an excuse,” he was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.
Since Ayub has not fully recovered yet, he also wasn’t selected for the ongoing limited overs series against New Zealand.
The men in green are 3-1 down in the T20I series heading into the 5th T20I on March 26 in Wellington.
Once the T20I series is over, the ODIs will begin on March 29 in Napier.
Pakistan Squad for T20I Series against New Zealand: Hasan Nawaz, Omair Yousuf, Mohammad Haris, Abdul Samad, Salman Ali Agha (captain), Irfan Khan Niazi, Khushdil Shah, Shadab Khan, Abbas Afridi, Jahandad Khan, Mohammad Ali, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, Sufiyan Muqeem, Abrar Ahmed, Usman Khan
Pakistan Squad for ODI Series against New Zealand: Mohammad Rizwan (captain), Salman Ali Agha, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Akif Javed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Imam-ul-Haq, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Irfan Khan Niazi, Naseem Shah, Sufiyan Muqeem, Tayyab Tahir
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