Pakistan cricket team have been dealt with a blow as opener Saim Ayub is set to be sidelined for at least six weeks after breaking his ankle during PAK vs SA 2nd Test. While it is a setback for Rizwan and co, the youngster’s injury could be a blessing in disguise for veteran Fakhar Zaman, with ICC Champions Trophy just around the corner. The prolific opener has been out of the consideration of the selectors after having a fall out with the PCB. While the board cited fitness issues as the reason for sidelining him, it is pretty evident that Zaman’s ties with the PCB is one of the major reasons why he has been neglected.
Saim Ayub out, Pakistan desperately need Fakhar Zaman
While Saim Ayub had gone on to become Pakistan’s first-choice opener across formats in the recent few months, his injury comes at an unfortunate time. Well, the young opener’s loss could turn out to be Zaman’s gain, and could pave way for his long-awaited return to the side. While it would have made all the more sense for Pakistan to drop Abdullah Shafique and replace him with Fakhar for CT 2025, the Men in Green are left with no option but to call back Zaman to the setup if they fancy a chance of winning the marquee event.
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With 3492 runs from 82 ODIs, Fakhar Zaman is indeed one of the best openers produced by Pakistan. averaging 46.45, he has 11 centuries and 16 fifties to his name. He is surely a better opening option for Pakistan instead of Abdullah Shafique who has been inconsistent. Had Fakhar Zaman paired up with Saim Ayub to be Pakistan opener, then the duo would surely have terrorized the rest of the teams and boost the batting line-up of Pakistan by a great extent. Unfortunately, Pakistan will now be forced to play Abdullah Shafique, simply because of lack of opening options. Hence, Pakistan shouldn’t play petty politics and instead rope in Zaman immediately while keeping him as the first-choice opener for CT 2025.
| Position | Span | Mat | Runs | Avg | SR | 100s | 50s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st position | 2017-2023 | 35 | 1258 | 37.00 | 84.25 | 4 | 6 |
| 2nd position | 2017-2023 | 46 | 2234 | 54.48 | 99.55 | 7 | 10 |
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