Ramiz Raja: “Saim Ayub reminds me a lot of Saeed Anwar”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Former Pakistan captain Ramiz Raja has admitted that opening batsman Saim Ayub reminds him a lot of the legendary Saeed Anwar.
Anwar is arguably the greatest opener Pakistan has ever produced as he is constantly praised for his run-scoring ability and elegance when batting.
Ayub, meanwhile, is one of the biggest young talents in the country right now and has dazzled a lot of people with his attacking brand of cricket.
The 23-year-old recently played in Pakistan’s three-match T20I series against Bangladesh in Lahore and scored 49 runs at an average of 16.33 and a strike-rate of 144.11.
He then travelled to Bangladesh with the men in green and made 28 runs in three T20Is at an average of 9.33 and a strike-rate of 121.73.
Next up was a white-ball tour of the West Indies and the Karachi native began by amassing 130 runs in three T20Is, which included two fifties, at an average of 43.33 and a strike-rate of 135.41.
As for the three-match ODI series, Ayub ended up with 28 runs at an average of 9.33.
After their tour of the West Indies, Pakistan took on the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Afghanistan in a T20I tri-series in Sharjah, which they won.
In the five matches he played, Ayub struck 111 runs, which included a top score of 69, at an average of 22.20 and a strike-rate of 132.14.
“Saim Ayub reminds me a lot of Saeed Anwar,” Ramiz was quoted as saying by Khel Shel on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Pakistan are now featuring in the 2025 Asia Cup, which is being held in the UAE.
Ayub failed to impress in the opening game against Oman as he was trapped lbw for a golden duck off the bowling of Shah Faisal.
Despite this, the men in green went on to crush Oman by 93 runs.
Pakistan’s next Asia Cup match will be against India on September 14 in Dubai.
Pakistan squad for UAE T20I tri-series and 2025 Asia Cup: Salman Ali Agha (captain), Abrar Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Hasan Nawaz, Hussain Talat, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Haris (wicketkeeper), Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Salman Mirza, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sufiyan Muqeem
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