Usman Khan: “Many told me I made a mistake, but I sacrificed for my dream. By Allah’s grace, I got the chance to represent Pakistan”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Big-hitting batsman Usman Khan has revealed a lot of people told him he made a mistake by switching allegiance from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to Pakistan.
Questions were raised about whether Usman would get the chance to represent the men in green, but the 30-year-old quickly put those doubts to rest with strong performances in domestic cricket and the Pakistan Super League (PSL).
To date, the Karachi native has featured in two ODIs – both of which came during Pakistan’s recent limited overs tour of New Zealand – and scored 51 runs at an average of 25.50.
He has also played 19 T20Is and amassed 239 runs, which includes a top score of 52, at an average of 14.93 and a strike-rate of 121.93.
“Many told me I made a mistake, but I sacrificed for my dream. By Allah’s grace, I got the chance to represent Pakistan,” Usman was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.
During this year’s PSL, Usman accumulated 213 runs in eight games for the Multan Sultans, which included a top score of 61, at an average of 26.62 and a strike-rate of 147.91.
After PSL 10, Pakistan faced Bangladesh in a three-match T20I series, but Usman was not included in the team.
The men in green won the series 3-0.
Pakistan Squad for Bangladesh T20I Series: Salman Ali Agha (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-captain), Abbas Afridi, Abrar Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Hassan Nawaz, Hussain Talat, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Haris (wicketkeeper), Muhammad Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan (wicketkeeper) and Saim Ayub