Abbas hopes to be more effective with white ball

SHARJAH: Prolific wicket-taking Test pacer Mohammad Abbas beamed with pride as he received his ODI cap from national team bowling coach Azhar Mahmood, and expressed hopes he could be as effective with the white ball as he is with the red.

According to Geo News, the 29-year-old made his ODI debut in the first day-night international on Friday, managing just one wicket for 44 in his 10 overs as Australia chased down a target of 281 for the loss of just two wickets. Abbas took down Aaron Finch, but only after the Australia captain cracked a match-winning 116.

That was in total contrast to the start of his Test career, after some impressive performances, Abbas made a big impact against Ireland in Malahide last year, when he took nine wickets — four for 44 and five for 66 in the sixth match of his career. His heroics led Pakistan to a five-wicket win. Abbas was again the pick of the bowlers with eight wickets in Pakistan’s win over England at Lord’s.

He completed 50 Test wickets in 10 Tests to become the joint-second fastest to the mark by a Pakistani bowler, one more than wrist-spinner Yasir Shah. Abbas admitted it was a challenge to bowl with white ball.

“In white ball cricket, you get flat wickets, so you have to adjust your bowling,” Abbas told www.pcb.com.pk. “But, in red ball cricket, you get better pitches. They are helpful, so you can bowl up also for the ball to swing. So, adjustment is the key after you assess the conditions.”

Abbas said ODI cricket is more demanding and there is less margin of error. “There is less margin of error in white ball cricket. If you err, you are hit for runs and boundaries,” said Abbas. “I will do my best to take wickets with the new ball. If you don’t get wickets, then the next option is to stop the flow of runs. Once you do that, then batsmen come under pressure and make mistakes,” Abbas said.