Abid learns from watching videos of batting legends

KARACHI: After his brisk half-century powered Pakistan to a series-clinching win in the third and final ODI against Sri Lanka on Wednesday, Pakistan opener Abid Ali said that he looks to hone his craft by studying the methods of former batting greats.

Abid scored 74 off 67, which included 10 hits to the fence, as he combined with Fakhar Zaman for a 123-run opening stand to set up Pakistan’s chase of 298. The hosts achieved the closed out the game in the penultimate over of the innings.

The 31-year-old revealed that watching videos of some of the great batsmen from the past helps him enhance his game.

“I try to learn from legends of the game by watching their videos,” he said. “When I go back, I watch videos of legends from different countries to help myself improve the game. Most recently I am following Misbah-ul-Haq and Younis Khan.”

Abid had been named in Pakistan’s ODI squad after having last played during the five-match bilateral series against Australia in UAE earlier this year. The right-hander, who replaced Imam-ul-Haq after the latter sustained a hand injury during the previous game, believes that strong competition for the opening slot is advantageous to the team.

“I try to take it positively when I’m not selected despite performing, I believe everything happens for a good reason,” he said.

“This is good for team that there’s a strong competition among openers as it encourages everyone to give their best which will be beneficial for the team,” Abid said.

The wicket-keeper batsman has retained his spot for the upcoming three-match T20I series, beginning October 7 at Lahore’s Gaddafi stadium. Currently featuring in the team as a specialist batsman with skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed doing the keeping duties, Abid’s prime focus at present is batting. “Wicketkeeping is something I do as my hobby, at the moment my total focus is on my batting and I’m working hard on it.”

The Lahore-born cricketer thanked the home fans for extending support in the series decider. “I would like to thank the home crowd for all the support,” he said. “It was great fun batting today. It’s good that cricket is happening in Pakistan and I can’t thank both the cricket boards enough who made this possible.