Mike Hesson: “Very selfless and often puts the team ahead of himself. He is better suited for number 3 or 4, but in this team, we bat him at 4 or 5. He’s respected in the group because of these things”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Pakistan white-ball head coach Mike Hesson admitted T20I captain Salman Ali Agha is “very selfless” as he bats lower down the order instead of number three or four, where he is “better suited.”
Salman has developed a reputation of being Pakistan’s middle order saviour as he often finds himself batting with tailenders but still manages to score runs.
During the recent home series against South Africa, he started off with 170 runs in two Tests, which included a top score of 93, at an average of 42.50.
In the three T20Is that followed, the 32-year-old finished with 35 runs at an average of 17.50 and a strike-rate of 106.06.
He fared much better in the ODI series, amassing 136 runs, which included two fifties, at an average of 68.
Salman continued his good run in ODIs during the three-match series against Sri Lanka, racking up 111 runs, which included a top score of 105 not out, at an average of 111.
“Very selfless and often puts the team ahead of himself. He is better suited for number 3 or 4, but in this team, we bat him at 4 or 5. He’s respected in the group because of these things,” Hesson was quoted as saying on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Pakistan are now involved in a T20I tri-series against Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe, where Salman has accumulated 65 runs in four matches, which includes a career-best 63 not out, at an average of 32.50 and a strike-rate of 132.65.
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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