[EXCLUSIVE] "I'm working on my fitness and my game at NCA": Azam Khan

[Cricket Warrior]

In a PakPassion exclusive interview, Azam Khan, the dynamic wicketkeeper-batter for Islamabad United, provided an exclusive look into his cricketing journey, addressing the significant challenges and criticisms he has faced. The son of World Cup winner Moin Khan, Azam spoke openly about the pressure of his lineage, the body-shaming he has endured, and his determination to return to the Pakistan national team.

Key revelations include:

The Pressure of a Cricketing Legacy: Azam Khan revealed the immense pressure that comes with being the son of a cricketing icon like Moin Khan. He stated that the perception of being privileged has created a stigma around his career. He candidly admitted, "People think he's privileged, so he shouldn't play," highlighting the constant scrutiny and unfair expectations that accompany his surname. His journey behind the stumps, a position his father famously excelled at, was a direct result of his father's advice. Initially a leg-spinner, Azam shared that his father advised him to "focus on keeping instead," a pivotal moment that shaped his career path.

Enduring Body-Shaming and Personal Attacks: One of the most emotional parts of the interview was Azam's reflection on the body-shaming and personal attacks he has faced from fans. He expressed the deep hurt caused by the criticism, revealing, "They would call me different names, it's very hurtful." Despite the pain, he has chosen to use the negativity as a source of motivation. He previously stated that he keeps a poster in his room with all the derogatory names he has been called, using it as a daily reminder to train harder and improve.

A Positive Mindset and Comeback Plans: Azam acknowledged his recent struggles in international cricket, stating, "It was a tough year for me." However, his mindset remains incredibly positive and resilient. He believes that his struggles are temporary and that he is "one good innings away" from a strong comeback. This positive outlook is a testament to his determination to fight his way back into the national squad and prove his critics wrong.

Praise for Islamabad United and Critique of Domestic Structure: The interview also touched upon the professional environment in which Azam thrives. He singled out his Pakistan Super League (PSL) franchise, Islamabad United, for their exceptional support and man-management. He praised the team's culture, noting, "Islamabad United is the best franchise, because when you are down, they're always behind you." This support system has been crucial for him in navigating the highs and lows of his career.

In a critical assessment of the Pakistani domestic cricket scene, Azam voiced his concerns about the current 16-team structure. He gave a blunt critique, stating, "The standard has gone down." This highlights a broader issue in Pakistan's cricketing system, which has been subject to frequent changes and lacks a stable foundation for consistent player development.

Leaving Karachi to Focus on Cricket: Finally, Azam Khan revealed a significant personal decision he made to advance his career: leaving his hometown of Karachi. He explained that this move was necessary to fully focus on his cricket. This decision underscores the sacrifices he is willing to make to reach his goals and silence those who question his dedication and commitment to the sport.

Watch the latest interview with Saj below:

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[gazza619]

Azam needs to man up and take responsibility for his own actions and failures. In professional sports there is no space for pitiful characters.

 

[BouncerGuy]

I hope he is doing what he said about fitness. He needs to understand that without fitness, he won't be able to make his way back into the side. He has talent and has the ability to strike big but he really needs to be fit and consistent with his form.

 

[Savak]

Yawn, we have been hearing this for the last 5 years. He didn't do anything about it in the last 5 years, he's not going to do anything about it. now.. He is happy, content with just playing leagues.

 

[pratiktc]

Pressure of Legacy: Were it not for his father's legacy, Azam woulf never have reached this level of cricket.

Critique of domestic structure: First you please try to average above 30 in FC or List A cricket then castigate its level.

 

[ads101]

Wish him the best. I think he’s very talented and his talent is underrated quite frankly. But he’s never going to play international cricket regularly at his fitness. And I do understand the Herculean effort it requires to drop from that to healthy weight. Once you get that big it is difficult.

I don’t know if it’s realistic of him to get to that fitness while at the same time not hampering his franchise career while doing so.

I don’t blame him, he’s been that way since young. It’s an unfortunate situation. It’s also not his fault franchises have given him contracts before he got to good fitness. Has to do the best for his career now.

I’m more annoyed at the guys who only need to lose a bit of weight to become fit. And the worst ones are the ones who were fit but let their fitness go whilst simultaneously playing international cricket. The latter is really the worst.

 

[The Bald Eagle]

I think Azam Khan should take motivation from Sarfaraz Khan, he can be a completely different batter with a better physique

 

[LordJames]

Wish him the best. I think he’s very talented and his talent is underrated quite frankly. But he’s never going to play international cricket regularly at his fitness. And I do understand the Herculean effort it requires to drop from that to healthy weight. Once you get that big it is difficult.

I don’t know if it’s realistic of him to get to that fitness while at the same time not hampering his franchise career while doing so.

I don’t blame him, he’s been that way since young. It’s an unfortunate situation. It’s also not his fault franchises have given him contracts before he got to good fitness. Has to do the best for his career now.

I’m more annoyed at the guys who only need to lose a bit of weight to become fit. And the worst ones are the ones who were fit but let their fitness go whilst simultaneously playing international cricket. The latter is really the worst.

Lets put this into context.

We all know ordinary people who make the commitment to lose massive amounts of weight and get fit. Azam Khan is a professional Sportsman with no shortage of money or consultancy and it has been years and he is about the same (or may be even worse).

This is not possible without him being lazy and uncommitted so his ability to stand and hit hard in his arc brings no benefit for Pakistan and it is dangerous for his own life.

 

[ads101]

Lets put this into context.

We all know ordinary people who make the commitment to lose massive amounts of weight and get fit. Azam Khan is a professional Sportsman with no shortage of money or consultancy and it has been years and he is about the same (or may be even worse).

This is not possible without him being lazy and uncommitted so his ability to stand and hit hard in his arc brings no benefit for Pakistan and it is dangerous for his own life.

The guy is on the really high scale of overweight to put it mildly. He has also likely been like that since a child. Sportsman, resources or not it’s extremely hard when you’re that weight. Most of those guys never get thin. In fact I think for some people it would be tough to get as overweight as Azam khan even if they let go of their diet completely.

Yes it is possible but it’s pretty improbable that he will. And as I said lets say he does go on a drastic diet and exercise which is what’s needed at that stage, it will impact his game. I don’t think he’ll be able to do both and keep his franchise form. He can do it gradually but it will probably be quite a few years progress by which his international career will be too late for anyway.

No person gets that big at such a young age normally. It’s either a medical problem or parents have enabled it when he was young. It is dreadfully tough to change something like that which is normal since childhood. I feel sorry for him if anything that someone didn’t intervene when he was younger. And realistically most of us wouldn’t be able to lose the weight either if we were used to that weight, mentality. It’s a completely different ball game at that weight. I’m very grateful I’ve never been in that situation.

Really he never should have been able to play PSL or maybe even domestic level until he lost weight. That would be the proper incentive. Honestly I think it would be a good rule that you have to be fit even to play PSL. Then some of these cricketers would take fitness seriously.

Perhaps a bigger problem is that we’ve allowed a cricketer with that fitness to go through the ranks. It shouldn’t have happened. And if we had been firm to lose the weight when he we younger who knows he might actually be healthy weight now.

 

[Nasty Naz]

I think it's an extreme cop out on his end to say because he was playing in leagues in years prior he didn't have the time to work on his fitness. He's mostly played in PSL/CPL/ILT20, a lot of which have occurred during Pakistan's domestic season and takes up approximately 3-4 months at most. With the exception of last PSL season, May-August is a ghost town for leagues and domestic cricket and that gives him ample time to actually work on his fitness. Instead, he's become more out of shape in recent years which is shocking. Based on how he himself describes his bad eating habits and hanging out a lot with his friends, I'd he simply didn't prioritize his fitness.

Action speaks louder than words and his actions over the years show he's cared very little about his fitness. Pretty sure he's even said it before for T20's, he doesn't need to have a high fitness level to play. Once he got in, showed his performances weren't up to the mark and how ridiculed he was for his fitness + performance, the tune has changed. Better late than never but he should have had the better sense to improve his fitness years ago. No one is expecting you to be like Kohl out there but there is an acceptable a cricketer should be able to maintain.

It's a shame really because he does have genuine talent with the bat and barring a miracle, I'd think his chance at an international career is over but he could get himself to a level where he can be a PSL and other leagues regular.

 

[LordJames]

The guy is on the really high scale of overweight to put it mildly. He has also likely been like that since a child. Sportsman, resources or not it’s extremely hard when you’re that weight. Most of those guys never get thin. In fact I think for some people it would be tough to get as overweight as Azam khan even if they let go of their diet completely.

Yes it is possible but it’s pretty improbable that he will. And as I said lets say he does go on a drastic diet and exercise which is what’s needed at that stage, it will impact his game. I don’t think he’ll be able to do both and keep his franchise form. He can do it gradually but it will probably be quite a few years progress by which his international career will be too late for anyway.

No person gets that big at such a young age normally. It’s either a medical problem or parents have enabled it when he was young. It is dreadfully tough to change something like that which is normal since childhood. I feel sorry for him if anything that someone didn’t intervene when he was younger. And realistically most of us wouldn’t be able to lose the weight either if we were used to that weight, mentality. It’s a completely different ball game at that weight. I’m very grateful I’ve never been in that situation.

Really he never should have been able to play PSL or maybe even domestic level until he lost weight. That would be the proper incentive. Honestly I think it would be a good rule that you have to be fit even to play PSL. Then some of these cricketers would take fitness seriously.

Perhaps a bigger problem is that we’ve allowed a cricketer with that fitness to go through the ranks. It shouldn’t have happened. And if we had been firm to lose the weight when he we younger who knows he might actually be healthy weight now.

Someone related to me is 60+ and developed Blood pressure and the Doctor told him that his weight is an issue. He literally used to go eat and then gag and became thin as a wafer before his family figured it out.

It is unhealthy, it is wrong and shouldn't be done but what I am saying is when a person is determined then they will find a way.

He needs to Join an "Extreme Weight Loss" Camp and lose it and if it means losing his franchise career but saving his life then so be it.

I agree that he shouldn't have been near PSL or any other franchise.

I think it's an extreme cop out on his end to say because he was playing in leagues in years prior he didn't have the time to work on his fitness. He's mostly played in PSL/CPL/ILT20, a lot of which have occurred during Pakistan's domestic season and takes up approximately 3-4 months at most. With the exception of last PSL season, May-August is a ghost town for leagues and domestic cricket and that gives him ample time to actually work on his fitness. Instead, he's become more out of shape in recent years which is shocking. Based on how he himself describes his bad eating habits and hanging out a lot with his friends, I'd he simply didn't prioritize his fitness.

Action speaks louder than words and his actions over the years show he's cared very little about his fitness. Pretty sure he's even said it before for T20's, he doesn't need to have a high fitness level to play. Once he got in, showed his performances weren't up to the mark and how ridiculed he was for his fitness + performance, the tune has changed. Better late than never but he should have had the better sense to improve his fitness years ago. No one is expecting you to be like Kohl out there but there is an acceptable a cricketer should be able to maintain.

It's a shame really because he does have genuine talent with the bat and barring a miracle, I'd think his chance at an international career is over but he could get himself to a level where he can be a PSL and other leagues regular.

I also thinks that its an extreme cop out on his part...

 

[pratiktc]

Azam has been obese at around 140kgs for too long.

I think around 2021 he had come down to 100-110kg overweight level but was unable to sustain and went back up to 125-135kg.

As elite level athlete he will never have a top flight career now because even if he loses weight sustainably over next 2 yrs (i.e. before he turns 30) his knees, hamstrings, glutes will all be impacted by the nearly 12-15 year overburdening.

Life significantly changes physically post 30 and career graph tailoff of Rahkeem Cornwall over last 2 yrs is a realistic indicator of what will likely be end of Azam as well.

 

[Savak]

Azam Khan would have tried Ozempic atleast if he was serious about losing weight and curtailing his eating habits. He is comfortable with the excuse I can't lose weight