Mohammad Amir: “I don’t know if Abhishek Sharma should be in our (Pakistan) team or not. But now that you have seen the potential in Maaz Sadaqat, you should pay special attention to how we should make him a player”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Pakistan pace bowler Mohammad Amir has compared up-and-coming batting all-rounder Maaz Sadaqat to India opener Abhishek Sharma, saying people have seen the potential Sadaqat has.
The 21-year-old made his international debut earlier this year and has now played six ODIs, scoring 134 runs, which includes a top score of 75 against Bangladesh, at an average of 22.33.
Bowling-wise, he has taken three wickets at an average of 13.
Amir noted that it is the Pakistan team management’s and Sadaqat’s own responsibility to ensure he stays focused and continues to develop his game.
“I don’t know if Abhishek Sharma should be in our (Pakistan) team or not. But now that you have seen the potential in Maaz Sadaqat, you should pay special attention to how we should make him a player,” he said on his YouTube channel as quoted by NDTV.
“It is the captain, management and system which make or ruin the career of a player. I am telling you this from my experience. It is his (Maaz’s) job and our system’s job as well to not distract him and to keep him focused. If you pay attention to Maaz Sadaqat and he works on his technique, he can become a player.
“You saw his shots (Pakistan’s 2nd ODI vs Bangladesh). It wasn’t a T20 game, but he was hitting sixes on both sides. He can become a player.”
Sadaqat wasn’t part of Pakistan’s squad for the two-Test series against the West Indies in Trinidad and Tobago, which ended as a 1-1 draw.
He also failed to make the cut for the ongoing three-Test tour of England, where the men in green are 2-0 down.
The 3rd Test will begin on September 9 in Birmingham.
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, Shan Masood and Ubaid Shah