Sahibzada Farhan: “T20I is such a format that not every player performs [in every match], and certain players have certain roles, but we are fully confident for Saim”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Sahibzada Farhan said everyone in the team has full confidence in fellow opener Saim Ayub, despite his recent run of inconsistent performances.
Ayub’s T20I career has been turbulent, having scored 1,298 runs in 67 matches, which includes six fifties, at an average of 21.27 and a strike-rate of 135.91.
Farhan noted that the 24-year-old cannot be expected to score in every match, but added that when he does come good, he has the ability to win matches for the Men in Green.
“Look, Saim Ayub is such a player who cannot perform in every single match because of the impact he imposes when he scores runs, but there is a firm belief that he will win us a match by scoring decent runs,” he was quoted as saying by Geo Super.
“And T20I is such a format that not every player performs [in every match], and certain players have certain roles, but we are fully confident for Saim.”
Both Farhan and Ayub were not picked for Pakistan’s ongoing Test series against the West Indies, where the men in green find themselves 1-0 down.
They also failed to make the cut for the three-Test series against England, which will take place between August 19 and September 13.
Pakistan Squad for West Indies Test Series: Babar Azam (captain), Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Ali Usman, Azan Awais, Imam-ul-Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Awais Zafar, Ghazi Ghori (wicketkeeper), Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Agha, Saud Shakeel, Shan Masood and Ubaid Shah
Pakistan Squad for England Test Series: Babar Azam (captain), Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Fazal, Ali Usman, Azan Awais, Imam-ul-Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Awais Zafar, Ghazi Ghori (wicketkeeper), Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Agha, Saud Shakeel (subject to fitness), Shan Masood and Ubaid Shah