Usman Khan, the Multan Sultans batter, during an interview with an international sports channel:
"I belong to a village in Sheikhupura called Farooqabad. My region was Sialkot, and when I watched the players there I thought I wouldn't get an opportunity there. My brother advised me to move to Karachi where I'd get a lot more opportunities. I moved to Karachi in 2012, where I worked extremely hard to make my name. I played for Pakistan cricket club where Saifi bhai [Sarfaraz Ahmed] was my captain. I performed but couldn't get an opportunity to play for my district."
"When I got a chance to keep and open, I topped the charts, and then enjoyed success in Ramzan Cricket, where I had the chance to make my name. I scored a number of hundreds there, and played a tournament at the Moin Khan academy, where I won the Player of the Tournament award, and Nadeem Omar drafted me into the PSL."
"I always had aspirations to play for Pakistan. But I also thought if someone else had nailed a place as opener at the top of the order for 4-5 years, I'd be wasting my time. That was also the case with the Karachi side, so I moved to the UAE. I performed well there, and was the Player of the Tournament in the T10. When you're a UAE player, you can play the Canada league or other such leagues, you get opportunities as an Associate cricketer more easily."
"But after making the switch to the UAE, I thought I wouldn't be picked in the PSL because I'm now an overseas cricketer. I never thought I'd enjoy the success I have now."
"I played for a season in the UAE in 2021. At the time I wasn't made any promises by the UAE about becoming a national cricketer for them. But when I scored the fastest hundred in the PSL last year, they said we'll give you a contract if you play for the UAE as a local player. I agreed. That allows me to play the ILT20 and the T10 as a local player which opens doors. I was in the central contract list for the UAE. That means you need an NOC from your board to play overseas cricket. And the UAE grants that easily, so I play wherever I get an offer."
"In Pakistan, lobbying and contacts make a huge difference to how many opportunities you get and how early you get them. The cricket I've played, I've played on merit, I don't have any such connections. In Pakistan, if someone powerful speaks up for you, you're much more likely to come to prominence. I don't think you get an opportunity early on in Pakistan despite performances unless you have someone influential to speak for you or a group who stands up for you. Otherwise you won't get chances."
"I did have a dream to play the PSL though, regardless of whether I play as a local or overseas player. So I'd like to give huge thanks to Ali Tareen [Multan Sultans owner] for picking me as an overseas player. But it's all up to the selectors. I still have 14 months left before I qualify for the UAE, but I told Waqar [Younis] bhai if I had guarantees that I'd get chances to play in Pakistan for my region or the national side, then it's only natural for me to be tempted."
"But as you know, if you don't have certainty, then it's hard to commit. I've seen the media talk about me now, but I'd always been clear if I don't get the chance to play for Pakistan, then I'd like to play for the UAE and showcase my talent. But at the same time, we do have responsibilities to our families and financial burdens we have to bear in mind. No one is safe in these economic times, so having financial security is hugely important to me."
"Saifi bhai [ Sarfaraz Ahmed] is a little more emotional and at times tenses up. Rizwan bhai [Mohammad Rizwan] never blames a player or scolds them if they've gone for runs. No one gets told they've cost the team a game. Strategically they're not dissimilar, but they way to they react emotionally and psychologically to on-field events can be quite different."
