Azhar, Asad line up county deals to hone match readiness

LONDON: Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq are looking to stints in county cricket as Pakistan attempt to find ways to ensure their Test specialists play regular higher quality cricket.

Somerset and Surrey were believed to be the two counties the duo are in talks with as they try and replace Matt Renshaw and Virat Kohli respectively, although a Surrey spokesman has since denied that this was the case.

Either way, that stint would not have been a long one, though a Somerset deal could potentially be for the summer.Both are likely to find out within a day or so, and the PCB is actively encouraging their search.

“Our chosen players, we’re hoping to get Azhar and Asad to play some county cricket,” Mickey Arthur, the Pakistan coach, said.“There is a little bit of interest at the moment, for a short period of time. Because those guys don’t go to these [T20] leagues and stuff, if they were to play county cricket we’d certainly encourage that.”

Azhar and Shafiq had mixed returns from Pakistan’s tour of Ireland and England and neither had the kind of tour expected from a senior player.Shafiq made two fifties across three Tests though he did look in form at both Lord’s and Headingley and was removed twice by unplayable deliveries. He also had a big hundred in the warm-up game against Northamptonshire.

Azhar, Pakistan’s most successful Test batsman over the last couple of years, had a poor tour outright, averaging a shade over 12 across the three Tests.Part of the problem was that neither had played an international match since October last year - and they will now not play another Test till the coming October.

“Yeah that’s always the challenge,” Arthur said. “You sort of don’t know what they go back to. We have player plans for everybody so I’d know where everybody is at any given time.“But I know Azhar Ali, I know Asad Shafiq, I know their work ethic. Everybody knows the standards they have to meet. When they arrive to the team, they will be there physically, mentally and technically because they have to be. That is the criteria we set for them.”