Bulawayo/Lahore: Fakhar Zaman's double century against Zimbabwe in the 4th ODI of the series has made the cricketers of Pakistan feel proud.
Pakistani captain Sarfaraz Ahmed said that looking at the form of his teams opening batsman, Fakhar Zaman, he thought that it was he who could possibly cross this bridge successfully. Praising the performance of Fakhar Zaman, hus team mates raved him for his knock. Shoib Malik said that it's a big feat to achieve, the whole team is proud of the openers knock, my wish is that more Pakistani batsmen become successful in playing an innings like this in future. Hassan Ali and others also paying tribute to his sensational innings wished glad tidings for him.
On the other hand the ex cricketers also appreciated this knock of Fakhar Zaman, Wasim Akram said that the opener has created history by showcasing an outstanding performance. Praising the current setup of Pakistan, he said that it's now that Pakistan crickets modern period has shown its glimpses. Fakhar Zaman, Faheem Ashraf, Shadaab Khan, Babar Azam and Hassan Ali's time has started now. It's these youngsters who have to take the Pakistan team forward. My advice will be that Fakhar should be tried in Test matches as well in order to start a change in the mood and behavior of the team.
Another Pakistan ex cricketer Aaqib Javid praising the left hander said that after Saeed Anwar Pakistan have now got an opener of exceptional capabilities, Fakhar Zaman has a lot of talent, he has the capability to absorb pressure, Fakhar Zaman's main weapon is his ability to play his natural game. During his early days he used to through his wicket away on 30's and 40's but now he has checked his strokes, he learned from his mistakes, scored hundreds and now has a double century to his name. His good form and strike rate will help Pakistan perform well against good opponents.
Moreover, Fakhar Zaman's Lahore Qalandar captain Brendon McCullum and ex cricketer Shoib Akhtar have praised Fakhar Zaman on his outstanding performance.
Review: Pakistan has produced players throughout who had something in them to become big names in world cricket. Be it Imran Khan, Zaheer Abbas, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Saqlain Mushtaq, Inzamam Ul Haq, Javed Miandad, Saeed Anwar, Shoaib Akhtar, Shahid Afridi, Mohammad Yousuf or the current young cricketers of Pakistan National team. Pakistan has never been short of producing players of great quality. But there was one position in the team where they were struggling ever since Saeed Anwar retired from international cricket. Pakistan, then, after a long time found that opener in Salman Butt but we all know what happened afterwards. The draught remained there and nobody stepped up to the challenge of making the opening spot his own. Countless openers came and left. In Fakhar Zaman they have found an opener who has taken the opportunity with both hands and made the opening slot his own. He came into the team and enjoyed success straightway. He became the world's fastest batsman to score 1000 ODI runs. Looking at his form and his approach to his game it will be of great help to the Pakistan team if he stays in that zone. After scoring the double century, Pakistan will be hoping that they have found the opener and a player they needed desperately.
All the players in the team wishing him good is a great sign for Pakistan cricket. Appreciating one another's success is a great thing to have in a team and when you're happy with your players performance it only builds bonds and makes a team perform better. The atmosphere in the dressing room and playing for each other always helps a team.
Ex cricketers appreciating the feat achieved by the opener is another good sign. It means that those who have left the ground haven't left cricket at all. They are all watching and supporting the game and it is obvious that they will be nurturing some good players which will be an asset to the team in future.
In the article it's mentioned that Fakhar plays fearless cricket and that he has an ability to absorb pressure. There's no lie in that statement at all. He indeed plays fearless cricket and also has the ability to absorb pressure. We have seen it in the past when he smashed a century in Champions Trophy Final against India. We all know the pressure of an Ind-Pak match and then if it's a final of ICC there's more into it. Delivering in that match was a pure evidence that Fakhar Zaman indeed has the quality to absorb pressure and perform for the team when it matters.
For him being a fearless cricketer, we saw it in the match against Australia when Pakistan had to chase down a target of 184 and lost 2 wickets in the very first over of the match. Fakhar didn't hold back and told his captain that he will play his natural game and attack the opposition. His fearless approach to chase down the target helped Pakistan win that match.
An advice or a lesson that we can learn from Fakhar is that a batter should always play his natural game and back what he has practiced. A batter should always have the ability to absorb pressure and take out everything out of the mind that disturbs it and then play balls according to their merit and back what he/she has learned. You should always back your instincts and play fearless cricket just as Fakhar does. You'll start making runs and more importantly win matches for your team. Do this and everything will fall into place.
Comments