Mike Hesson: “Saim Ayub is a key player for us. When he scores runs, Pakistan genuinely wins”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Pakistan white-ball head coach Mike Hesson has insisted opening batsman Saim Ayub is a “key player for us” as he has the ability to be a genuine match-winner.
Ayub has endured a turbulent period of form lately as during the home series against South Africa, he started off with 108 runs in three T20Is, which included a top score of 71 not out, at an average of 54 and a strike-rate of 150.
In the three ODIs that followed, he continued to impress, finishing with 169 runs, which included two fifties, at an average of 56.33.
Next up was three ODIs against Sri Lanka, but Ayub couldn’t maintain his momentum as he was limited to 39 runs in two games at an average of 19.50.
Despite his inconsistent batting, Hesson reiterated that the 23-year-old is a special talent who will continue to be backed.
“Saim Ayub is a key player for us. When he scores runs, Pakistan genuinely wins,” he was quoted as saying on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Pakistan are now taking on Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe in a T20I tri-series, where Ayub has amassed 55 runs in three matches at an average of 18.33 and a strike-rate of 105.76.
Pakistan squad for Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe T20I Tri-Series: Salman Ali Agha (captain), Abdul Samad, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Salman Mirza, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Usman Khan (wicketkeeper), Usman Tariq
Reserves: Haris Rauf, Sufiyan Muqeem
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