"Once Azam Khan plays in PSL, I don't think anybody will question his selection" : Sarfaraz Ahmed

[Hasan]

Haters will hate but we are fortunate that their powers are limited to this forum. Amazing Azam will emerge as a very good player as long as he remains committed and not distracted by fame and the barking of mad dogs!

 

[thecrusade911]

A selection likely based on nepotism, but it's that hunger to prove to people that it wasn't which is what drives players to work harder more than ever.

Look at Imam and now look at Azam. Both feel they have more to prove than anyone else.

If Azam is serious he'll hire a personal trainer & nutritionist now and look to break into the national side within 2 years. There are tons of spaces for batsmen, it depends on how badly he wants it or wants biriyani.

I've heard he has already hired a trainer and has lost around 13 kgs of weight. We can clearly see he is a lot leaner than the last year psl.

 

[Bewal Express]

Azam is slight upgrade than Imam does'nt mean he is deserving. If compare with Imam even tailenders would look better.

Arshad Iqbal gave several lives to him. Azam was almost babysit by Karachi kings thruout his innings.
Azam has similar problems, cant negotiate slow deliveries or bounce. Has more in common with uncle Inzamam when he runs between wickets.
He is still to face seam and swing.

Slow balls can be negotiated with experience. It's the not big problem.

 

[Rana]

Two very good knocks that have helped his team win, Needs to learn how to stay there til the end to see his team home.

I would prefer if QG drop Shahzad and promote Azam at No.3

 

[world cup captain]

I'll take back the words I used for him but he needs to work on his fitness. He's got the potential to play for Pakistan in the middle order in a couple of years.

 

[Hawkeye]

He's already better than many of our experienced players in T20s.

Imam
Fakhar too probably
Shehzad
Sarfraz
Rizwan

Does that mean he'll succeed at the international level?

No, unless he fixes some flaws in his game.

Can do it in 1-2 years if committed enough.

 

[ads101]

He's talented. It actually feels like such a shame, yet another fat/unfit guy produced by our system that has talent, yet doesn't have fitness. And the fit guys like Shan, Fakhar, Shehzad, Rizwan, fawad etc. don't have the talent. It's so frustrating for some reason they can't have both.

He's young, I hope he tries hard to lose weight and gets his fitness in check. A lot of our guys don't try to get fit, or worse become fat before they've made it to international level. He's got time to turn it around. I'd rather he get to decent fitness before he debuts in internationals. Not crazy fit but as someone said at least rohit sharma sort of fitness.

 

[shah_1]

Azam is slight upgrade than Imam does'nt mean he is deserving. If compare with Imam even tailenders would look better.

Arshad Iqbal gave several lives to him. Azam was almost babysit by Karachi kings thruout his innings.
Azam has similar problems, cant negotiate slow deliveries or bounce. Has more in common with uncle Inzamam when he runs between wickets.
He is still to face seam and swing.

You don't see too much of seam and swing in white ball cricket otherwise Roy and Finch wouldn't have such brillant stats

 

[fawad_wellwisher]

He is a walking wicket. Smart opposition will figure him out pretty quickly.

 

[Hawkeye]

He's talented. It actually feels like such a shame, yet another fat/unfit guy produced by our system that has talent, yet doesn't have fitness. And the fit guys like Shan, Fakhar, Shehzad, Rizwan, fawad etc. don't have the talent. It's so frustrating for some reason they can't have both.

He's young, I hope he tries hard to lose weight and gets his fitness in check. A lot of our guys don't try to get fit, or worse become fat before they've made it to international level. He's got time to turn it around. I'd rather he get to decent fitness before he debuts in internationals. Not crazy fit but as someone said at least rohit sharma sort of fitness.

He isn't really produced by the system.

No such unfit guy can enter the system these days, or survive.

He's brought in from outside the system, direct entry purely by Moin Khan.

Never played first class either.

Only his dad's academy.

 

[ZamanFan]

You don't see too much of seam and swing in white ball cricket otherwise Roy and Finch wouldn't have such brillant stats

You would mot only see seam but bounce as well and this kid being hyped will be taking more at the helmet if he goes to Australia he has a lot of work to do before being considered for national team.

 

[shah_1]

You would mot only see seam but bounce as well and this kid being hyped will be taking more at the helmet if he goes to Australia he has a lot of work to do before being considered for national team.

He should never be considered for national team right now. He needs to play full domestic season or two. I would like to see him play for Sindh one day team this season.

 

[Rana]

He should never be considered for national team right now. He needs to play full domestic season or two. I would like to see him play for Sindh one day team this season.

No thanks

David Warner played a Test match for Australia having not played a single domestic match. Azam is comfort better than anyone eager to take Malik and Hafeez’s spot in T20s once they retire

 

[KingOfPakBreakfast]

He should never be considered for national team right now. He needs to play full domestic season or two. I would like to see him play for Sindh one day team this season.

[MENTION=130419]shah_1[/MENTION] is spot on here. The kid is a talent, but he's lacking in reps, I.e. time out in the middle. He's unable to fully play on the offside or body line short stuff because he's never had to face it at a high level before. The flab he's carrying will also impede his pulling and leg glance shots, with the ability to pull effectively vital in Australia especially. You put him in Domestic cricket and you're leaving him in a shark tank. Everyone will be gunning for the parchi. If he survives and performs there, let's then talk about national team selection. Until then, he needs to more batting get reps and lose another 15 kilos of fat and put on mean muscle.

 

[KingOfPakBreakfast]

No thanks

David Warner played a Test match for Australia having not played a single domestic match. Azam is comfort better than anyone eager to take Malik and Hafeez’s spot in T20s once they retire

Yes, and Warner's been the only one I.e. the exception that proves the rule. I'd rather we get a fully ready, refined version of Azam in a year or two rather than picking him in desperation, only to see his confidence shattered if he fails, which he will given his current deficiencies. In the meantime one hopes that other alternatives to Malik and Hafeez emerge.

 

[Glen Durrant fan]

Really don't think weight matters. Look at possibly T20's greatest ever batsmen, Chris Gayle. Lots of players also lose power as they lose weight after getting used to it.

 

[Cryin Out Loud]

Thoughts based on today?

Didn't see the game. Seems to have played another match winner.

 

[amvbfm]

No thanks

David Warner played a Test match for Australia having not played a single domestic match. Azam is comfort better than anyone eager to take Malik and Hafeez’s spot in T20s once they retire

Really? You are comparing him with Warner? And even if Warner hadn't played a single domestic game (which claim I highly doubt) he must've played tons of age group matches before being selected. Azam has played a grand total of 8 list As with nothing to show. I am not against him but at the moment he has done absolutely nothing to be anywhere near the Pakistan team. Let him play at least one proper season of domestic cricket and work on his weaknesses(of which there are many) and then we can think about international cricket. Two cameos on flat surfaces against middling bowling attacks doesn't mean he can handle the likes of Starc or Bumrah.

 

[coy0607]

Yes, and Warner's been the only one I.e. the exception that proves the rule. I'd rather we get a fully ready, refined version of Azam in a year or two rather than picking him in desperation, only to see his confidence shattered if he fails, which he will given his current deficiencies. In the meantime one hopes that other alternatives to Malik and Hafeez emerge.

Azam is more than holding his own against good bowlers like Amir, Imad, Jordan, Shadab. He'll face better bowling as the tournament goes on, and if he continues to play like he has so far, I don't think you can ding him for not playing against better bowlers.

He hasn't earned a T20 spot yet, but if he has a good PSL, that should be enough for T20 selection

 

[Hasan123]

He doesn't look as bad as I thought. Although I would like to see how he does with a longer sample set rather than a couple of games.

 

[minamino]

The difference between him and Shadab, Hassan, Faheem etc is that he is educated and well spoken. I don't think success will get to his head. I would like to see him perform against better bowlers though the straight drive to Jordan for a four was amazing.

 

[Rana]

The difference between him and Shadab, Hassan, Faheem etc is that he is educated and well spoken. I don't think success will get to his head. I would like to see him perform against better bowlers though the straight drive to Jordan for a four was amazing.

What I am more surprised about is how Moin coached such a decent cricketer. He already looks miles ahead of his father in batting ability.

 

[minamino]

What I am more surprised about is how Moin coached such a decent cricketer. He already looks miles ahead of his father in batting ability.

I don't think Moin coached him. There are some really good coaches in his academy who might have worked with him and I am impressed by his rotation of strike unlike that tulla Asif.

 

[Rana]

Really? You are comparing him with Warner? And even if Warner hadn't played a single domestic game (which claim I highly doubt) he must've played tons of age group matches before being selected. Azam has played a grand total of 8 list As with nothing to show. I am not against him but at the moment he has done absolutely nothing to be anywhere near the Pakistan team. Let him play at least one proper season of domestic cricket and work on his weaknesses(of which there are many) and then we can think about international cricket. Two cameos on flat surfaces against middling bowling attacks doesn't mean he can handle the likes of Starc or Bumrah.

I’m not comparing him with Warner. I’m just saying that this ‘play him in domestics first’ thing seems to be a bit overrated. If you can see that in T20 at least there really isn’t anyone much better than him to replace Hafeez and Malik at 4 and 5, then why waste time on him to just play meaningless games?

 

[minamino]

I’m not comparing him with Warner. I’m just saying that this ‘play him in domestics first’ thing seems to be a bit overrated. If you can see that in T20 at least there really isn’t anyone much better than him to replace Hafeez and Malik at 4 and 5, then why waste time on him to just play meaningless games?

Warner made his Test debut in 2011 and he had played a lot of FC matches and not to forget international matches too before that.

 

[Flat_Track_Bully]

He needs to turn all of that into muscle. Would be a total liability in the field.

 

[coy0607]

I don't think Moin coached him. There are some really good coaches in his academy who might have worked with him and I am impressed by his rotation of strike unlike that tulla Asif.

Asif literally made a min-international career out of a couple of 6's in a PSL a few years ago. Nothing about his game is impressive

 

[Ertugrul_Bey]

I don’t understand the fuss about him losing weight. He’s quick between the wickets and can hit them balls miles. He has a good head on his shoulder and has almost finish two games for his team. Azam is way better then Asif Ali, Imam, Fakher and Shahzad. Let the kid play his game and with time he will improve his physic.

 

[Angrez Pakistani]

Kid needs at least 3 years of exposure to high intensity cricket to even get the recognition of national selectors.

 

[The Viper]

He does have talent, that cannot be denied. Like many of our batsman, he doesn't score much on the off side. We need to see more of him though, you can't really judge him over a couple of good games. Lets see how he tackles the slower ball again. Against Peshawar, Wahab and Hasan Ali contained him by using slower balls.

 

[KhanNn]

Wahab did. Seems like kid is scared of serious pace or hasn't a clue against it

 

[TeymurBlake]

He looks decent but needs to work on his fitness.

 

[hur rizvi]

PSL is highest level T20 domestic tournament so if by the end of tourney he’s among top scorers or has played several impact innings (2 already), then he should debut in SA series. We literally have no decent hitters. Beggars can’t be choosers

 

[shamaan]

Another match winning performance csn also rotate strike keep it up lad

 

[aukhan]

Its too early for him. He should play First class and domestic competition. Selecting him for Pakistan would be premature and could potentially damage him if he fails. Lets wait for atleast 2 years.

 

[amvbfm]

I’m not comparing him with Warner. I’m just saying that this ‘play him in domestics first’ thing seems to be a bit overrated. If you can see that in T20 at least there really isn’t anyone much better than him to replace Hafeez and Malik at 4 and 5, then why waste time on him to just play meaningless games?

Because those "meaningless games" give him the experience of playing under different conditions under different oppositions. Do you really think that his 8 list A games and 4 PSL appearances have prepared him to face top international bowlers? He has routinely been bamboozled by slower balls and his offside play is almost nonexistent yet you believe top international bowlers will be unable to contain him.