Pacer Naseem Shah eyeing comeback for Asia Cup

ISLAMABAD: Pacer Naseem Shah — who was ruled out of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) because of an injury — hopes to make a comeback in the upcoming Asia Cup which will be hosted by Sri Lanka in September.

“For now, I have set focus on the upcoming Asia Cup this year and the next year’s ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup,” Shah said, according to a press release. The Asia Cup begins on September 5 and ends on the 14th.

On his bowling role model, he said: “Former New Zealand fast-bowler Shane Bond was my ideal bowler. People say that I have a similar bowling action like him, which I take as a compliment. My objective is to play for Pakistan and serve my country in all three formats of the game.”

Shah, who was replaced by Mohammad Hasnain in the Quetta Gladiators squad for PSL, recalled that it was one of the saddest days of his life when he suffered injury and was out of PSL.

“I want to thank the Quetta Gladiators’ management, who despite my injury took me along with them for PSL,” he said.

He praised the club’s skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed and the atmosphere there. “Sarfaraz’s pep talk acted as a catalyst for me. He explained to me that injuries are part and parcel of a cricketer’s life.

“The atmosphere in the Quetta Gladiators dugout was absolutely fantastic, where the greats of the game like Sir Viv Richards, Dwayne Bravo and Moin Khan were present to pass on the knowledge and share their experiences with the youngsters.”

Shah said Usman Shinwari’s example was a motivation for him. “Shinwari, who suffered a stress fracture in his back after announcing his arrival in the series against Sri Lanka in the UAE in 2017, encouraged me to make a comeback,” he said.